What to do with audiovisual carriers after their digitization? Proposal for a five-step decision-making framework

Both traditional and more recent audiovisual carriers degrade. Even CD-ROMs have typically only a ten-year expected life span. In addition, playback equipment for both analogue and digital carriers will ultimately grow scarcer and more expensive to repair or replace. Archives and museums are inevitably faced with the decision of whether to preserve audiovisual carriers after their content has been digitized. This paper offers a draft decisionmaking framework developed by the Flemish Institute of Archiving (VIAA). Assuming that an institution already has a digital collection management system in place, the proposed framework addresses the concepts of favourability, possibility, value, preservation conditions and the risk for other carriers through a series of questions. The paper also addresses the disposal of carriers, should an organization decide that disposal is in the best interests of its collections.

If experts predict that most magnetic tapes will no longer be readable after 2030, how much do archives and museums still have to invest in the preservation of audiovisual carriers? Will there even be players available? Some machines and parts are already scarce. In other words: now is the time to digitize analogue audiovisual carriers. But what happens then?
The above is of course a very provocative statement, but as ever more audiovisual collections get digitized, the question arises, what to do with the original carriers after the migration to file-based formats has been completed. Classic audiovisual archiving theory, in this case IASA-TC03, says we should keep them "whenever possible" (IASA Technical Committee, 2005). But what if storage is an issue? Will we keep them -and if so, for how long -or can we discard them? But how, and under which circumstances?
Undoubtedly there is no simple answer, so we may have to formulate some nuanced advice, with many arguments to base a decision upon. We will have to investigate and provide good practices, develop solid guidelines and even create instruments that can really serve in practice, such as a decision framework.
The current large-scale digitization projects organized by the Although other concerns than the ones outlined here might arise, our aim in sharing our guidelines is to inspire others  (7-10 October 2015). We also studied some recent publications, in particular Memoriav (2016), Pellizzari (2015) and Mäusli, Herold and Looser (2014),as well as a presentation by Arnoud Goos (2015). We also took a look at guidelines from the museum world, i.e. the Dutch guidelines for the discarding of museum objects (LAMO; see Bergevoet, Kok and de Wit, 2006

A five-step decision-making framework
Assuming reliable digital collection management practices are in place, VIAA considered it its task to guide the content partners through the decision process of discarding carriers after digitization, in case -and this is important -there is a need to do this. VIAA defined a five-step decision framework.
Each step contains key questions that can help the content partner to make a well-considered decision.
Step 1 Heritage-managing institutions should carefully consider the need and the available capacity for the disposal of carriers.
They should ask themselves the following questions: • Will the disposal effectively improve the collection?
The disposal of (a range of) carriers will make more storage room available for other carriers; thus the remaining collection can be stored more properly and in a better organized fashion. It will also give staff more time to spend on more urgent collection matters. The funds that were used for the preservation of the discarded carriers can be relocated to invest in new collection items or better conservation conditions for the remaining collection items.
In case of disposal by sale, funds will be gathered that can be used to improve the collection or storage conditions for the remaining collection parts.
• Is there capacity to carry out a discarding project?
Discarding carriers should be understood and handled as a project. To carry out a project, one needs funds, staff and time. The project should be well prepared and executed: sorting out the carriers that qualify as to-be-discarded, decently documenting each step in the process, carefully running through the decision framework, consulting a team of experts (preferably internal as well as external), exploring and preparing a manner of discarding and so on.
Related to this, another important question is: does the management support the project?
If the answer to the questions above is no, the discarding process should stop here. If the answer is yes, and enough capacity is guaranteed, the discarding process can continue to the next step.
Step 2: Is disposal possible?
In some cases, museums and archives do not own (the rights to) their collections but are merely keepers. As a consequence, they may not have the right to dispose of the collection items. Also, issues of copyright might be applicable, and not only when it concerns works of art. In the case of artworks the (heirs of the) artist should always be contacted when disposal is considered, because the intentions of the artist should be taken into account. Donors sometimes offer an interesting item to a museum or archive but specifically demand that the object will be displayed and will never leave the collection. If this is the case, the heritage-managing institution has two options: to stop the discarding process immediately or to contact the donor or his/her relatives to see if they want to change the conditions of the contract or if they want to take the item back. An item can also be deposited. In this case the preserving institution is not the owner and has no right to perform a disposal. If the item is a long-term loan that belongs to a private collection or another institution, arrangements can be made to send it back to the original owner.
• Are there copyrights applicable on the item or collection, and did the maker of the carrier write down his/her demands concerning the item as an art object?
It may be the case that an artist intended to use a specific type of carrier for the artwork. If so, one cannot choose to make a digital copy and get rid of the carrier because the carrier is an intrinsic part of the artwork.
The same applies here: the creator or his/her heirs should be contacted to discuss the actions taken to preserve or discard the carrier. It is advisable to contact the legal department of the institution or a legal expert to sort this out.
If the answer to any of the above questions is yes, institutions should consider the mentioned options or stop the discarding process here. If none of these rights are applicable, they can continue to the next step.
Step 3 If the answer to at least one of the above questions is yes, one should reconsider the disposal and stop the process here. If not, the process can continue to the next step.
Step 4: Are preservation conditions suitable?
Audiovisual carriers demand special preservation conditions that archives and museums cannot always guarantee. A relatively cold and dry environment, free of dust and air pollution, is desired. The carriers will degrade quicker if these conditions are not fulfilled.
Not only very old and fragile audiovisual carriers (like wax cylinders) but also more recent carriers (like the CD) are subject to deterioration. What is certain is the fact that the carriers will only degrade more over the years and in the end it will even become impossible to play them due to this degradation. However, when exactly it will become impossible to play them is not clear in advance. This can only be determined by regular checks. Still, there is a good chance that old tapes can still be played, e.g. for redigitization, if the right equipment and expertise is available. In this case one has to keep in mind that the costs might increase as the condition becomes even worse.

Heritage managing institutions should carefully consider if
there is a real preservation issue for the carriers. They should ask themselves the following questions: • Are the storage conditions unsuitable for this carrier type?
As mentioned, audiovisual carriers should be stored in relatively dry and cold conditions: an average of 20-30 percent relative humidity and 12-17 °C, even colder for film (we refer to other sources for more detailed information on climate specifications). However, this is a climate which might be not well tolerated by other archival or museum objects. A separate storage room for audiovisual carriers is desirable, but that is a huge investment for sometimes only a relatively small collection.
Many institutions cannot guarantee these conditions, but carriers will degrade more quickly if these conditions are not met. Even if the carrier is still playable, will it still be in a few years if it remains in the same conditions?
• Is there a pressing lack of space, or is there an actual problem that causes the removal of carriers from the storage?
Very few archives or museums have storage room to spare. Luckily, in many archives or museums the further increase of analogue or carrier-based audiovisual collections will slow down and ultimately even end due to the change from analogue to digital or from carrier-based to file-based production. But since many heritage organizations do not store their audiovisual collection in separate, specialized storage rooms, the possibility exists that the space where audiovisual carriers are stored is required for other collections. The overall collection often grows faster than the available storage space in archives and museums.
If the answer to one of the above questions is yes, one can continue to the next step. If not, the process can stop here.
Step 5: Is the carrier at risk? Conservation or restoration actions, as well as isolating the affected items, can be very costly, so collection managers should always consider if the carrier and content is worth the investment.
• Is the carrier obsolete, or is the content unreadable?
An interesting example is the CD-R, which is a relatively recent format and still in use. In general, CD-Rs are expected to have an average life expectancy of ten years.
As well as degradation of the dye, failure of a CD-R can be due to the reflective surface. While silver is more widely used, it is more prone to oxidation. Gold-based CD-Rs do not suffer from this problem, but they are more expensive and no longer widely available (IASA Technical Committee, 2014). VIAA just ended a CD-R digitization project in which 18 percent of the carriers proved unreadable, even by trying several kinds of data extraction.
• Is the playback equipment (or spare parts for the equipment, or the expertise for repair) for this type of carrier rare or non-existent?
Although cultural heritage institutions often do not own playback equipment for analogue carriers, there are often still players available that can be loaned, hired or bought.
It is however important to note that even though for many playback technologies devices can still be found on the market, players as well as repair parts and the expertise to install them will become harder to find in the near future, which means that costs for (re)digitization will rise.
Institutions that do not have the players at hand cannot consult the content, which makes it difficult to (re)use them in exhibitions, for researchers, etc. Providing a digital copy may solve this issue at least partly, thereby making the analogue carrier dispensable.
If the answer to at least one of the above questions is yes, one can decide to discard the carrier and move on to making a decision about the means of discarding. This is the end of the decision process.

The disposal itself
Once an institution has run through all the decisionmaking steps and has concluded that it will discard a (range of) carrier(s), it can start with the actual disposal.
There are different kinds of disposal or deaccessioning. In any case, thorough research should be done, different options should be considered and an interdisciplinary team of (internal and external) experts should be consulted.
• Donation, transfer or exchange between cultural institutions This can be considered a good practice when, for example, a museum is looking for an audiovisual object for its technical characteristics, rather than for its content, and an archive has this specific item but it is no longer playable. If the archive is ready to dispose of the carrier, then a transfer to the museum (and the terms) can be negotiated.

• Sale between cultural institutions
This is not a good practice and is not recommended.
• Sale to the public This is a difficult matter and can only be motivated when the profits are used to enhance the collection, either by improved preservation measures or by acquisitions. It is very important to communicate about this carefully and properly, in order not to harm the reputation of the institution, especially when it concerns the public good.

• Degradation
It can also be an option to 'degrade' a carrier from museum object to working or didactic collection. This option has several advantages: • No cost for destruction.
• No negotiations with external parties needed.
• The object stays within the walls of the institution ('invisible' discarding).
• No more preservation costs.
However, not every institution has educational activities where audiovisual carriers can be used without specific relation to the content.

• Elimination or destruction
In the case of audiovisual carriers, this is the most preferred option. Magnetic carriers are considered chemical waste and should not just be thrown in the bin. They should be processed by specialized waste-processing companies. They usually provide containers and charge by the kilogram.

Conclusion
In We have tried to formulate a solution for cases in which this principle has to be left behind.
From our work it is clear that this decision process is never quick or easy. 'Look before you leap' may sound like a cliché in this case, but it is the best advice we can give. To facilitate this consideration, we propose a five-step decision tree, based on particularly heavy but necessary concepts: favourability, possibility, value, preservation conditions and the risk for other carriers.
Several factors can make this five-step approach more effective. The first is to take a positive approach: disposal of collection items should always benefit the collection, the institution and even the local, regional, national or even global heritage. One should always start a disposal process with the goal of enhancing and improving the collection. Second, an interdisciplinary approach is always recommended. Disposal is not just a question of collection management. It is a legal issue, an ethical issue and even an environmental one. Third, the importance of documentation should not be neglected.
If circumstances force us to leave a key principle of preservation -to actually keep the carriers -we should at least document these circumstances, as well as the decision process and the way we executed our actions of disposal, for our successors to understand. Somewhat related is the importance of communication. Discarding heritage is not something any stakeholder of a memory institution would expect them to do, but that does not make it less inevitable at some point. In order to keep its legitimacy, the institution must communicate the process in a transparent and open manner, before, during and after the disposal itself.
VIAA will pay sufficient attention to these returning aspects while advising its content partners. We will check and recheck our framework with experts in the field, and we will test our admittedly theoretical framework in practice. It is up to our content partners to decide whether they accept our reasoning and whether they find it usable in practice. As this discussion reflects historical and therefore evolving thinking about heritage par excellence, we hope that the discussion will continue to live, because we believe that what we keep is also defined by what we decide not to.