Within “KUR – Program for conservation and restoring of mobile archival holding” initiated by the Federal Cultural Foundation and the Cultural Foundation of German States and thanks to the additional donations (also from the documenta forum) the documenta archiv was able to support and partake in the project “mediaartbase.de”. Collaborative partners included Kassel Documentary Film and Video Festival, European and Media Art Festival Osnabrück and ZKM - Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe. The project’s aim was to rescue acutely endangered audio and video footage by creating digital surrogates, to develop descriptive standards for audiovisual media, and establish an open database for media art and art documentation. In order to create a cost-effective decentralized database, „mediaartbase.de" technology was based on open-source software. Guidance in developing metadata profiles was provided by the project partner “Competence Center for Interoperable Metadata” of the University of Göttingen, who deliver nationwide certification for metadata applications. Through support of this project, and a long-term cooperation with the Archive of the Hessian Broadcasting Corporation the documenta archiv was able to digitize nearly 650 of its most endangered audio-visual materials and provide them with descriptive data, allowing for accessibility in the database.