- The old media archives must be digitized to support British police investigations
- Bluelight opens a frame of 100 million pounds sterling to upgrade the analog police files
- Suppliers must fix the correct metadata and safely manage sensitive materials
The British police service is preparing to spend up to 100 million pounds sterling to scan millions of Hours of VHS and other analog media.
The work will be purchased through a framework agreement managed by Bluelight Commercial, a non-profit organization that supports emergency services with commercial projects.
The conversion aims to support the transition to digital evidence management by transforming obsolete formats into electronic files.
Unique and unpredictable
The frame will take place for a little over four years, from October 2025, and will be divided into three lots.
The first covers internal conversion and includes the delivery of software, hardware and training. The second batch allows outsourcing, suppliers collecting or receiving bands for out -of -site conversion. The third batch focuses on niche formats such as microfiche, DVDs and CDs.
In total, work is evaluated up to 120 million pounds sterling, including VAT. Most part, 60 million pounds sterling, will be assigned to internal conversion efforts. Externalization services can reach 30 million pounds sterling, with niche media constituting the rest. Suppliers will be able to bid for one, two or the three lots.
Commercial Bluelight claims that suppliers must be able to provide ready to be ingested results in digital evidence systems. This includes fixing good metadata and the secure guarantee of sensitive material.
The call for tenders is open to small and medium -sized businesses as well as voluntary or community suppliers.
Although the framework authorizes direct awards, the police forces can also execute mini-competitions to decide which service or supplier offers the best value for their needs.
The open nature of the frame means that there is no ceiling on the number of suppliers that can be involved.
Although VHS has become obsolete years ago, the format archives are still widely used in the police.
It’s not like converting some personal films with a USB capture device. Police files must be kept with precise metadata, stored in secure formats and integrated into evidence systems that meet legal standards.
The scale is also important, millions of hours requiring coherent processing, file management and long -term digital preservation.
The tools assisted by AI could help accelerate the parts of the process, especially during marking, compression or sorting large volumes of sequences. But the main task – reading physical bands and the conversion of their analog signal to digital files – always depends on specialized material and real -time reading. The AI can only go to work after completing this step.
Via The register
