● Covered by 3 sources · 3 reportsMedium impact1 negative2 neutral
Nine PBS Regains Access to 50TB Archive After Cloud Vendor Ceases Operations
Key points
- Nine PBS lost access to 50TB of data from its cloud vendor OSS.
- OSS ceased operations and cut off access to data prematurely.
- Nine PBS sued Iron Mountain, the physical data center host.
- A judge ordered Iron Mountain to provide access to the data.
- The archive contains 70 years of unique, irreplaceable content.
Data Access Restored for Nine PBS
Nine PBS, a public television station based in St. Louis, Missouri, has regained access to approximately 50TB of archival data. This development follows a legal dispute initiated by Nine PBS after its cloud storage provider, Open Source Storage (OSS), ceased operations and became unresponsive earlier this year. The data, spanning 70 years of the station's history, was physically stored at an Iron Mountain data center.
Vendor Disappearance and Legal Action
Nine PBS had been utilizing OSS for cloud storage since 2019. The station intended to renew its contract on March 6, but OSS did not respond and abruptly cut off data access, despite a contractual 30-day retrieval period. Investigations by Nine PBS revealed that the OSS website was defunct and the company was listed as delinquent by the Colorado Secretary of State.
In response, Nine PBS filed a lawsuit against OSS and its leadership, and separately against Iron Mountain Data Centers in July. The lawsuit against Iron Mountain, filed in Denver District Court, sought to compel the data center to preserve and release the station's data, which Iron Mountain had initially refused to do.
Judicial Intervention
A judge previously blocked Iron Mountain from deleting or modifying the data. In a subsequent hearing, a judge ruled that Iron Mountain must hand over any physical devices holding the data to Nine PBS. The station is now responsible for finding a third party to assist in the retrieval process.
Irreplaceable Archive at Risk
The 50TB archive contains a wide range of materials, including TV shows, videos, photos, and other digital cultural objects relevant to St. Louis's history. Specific content includes coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, East St. Louis's history, and The Great Flood of 1993, with over 11,000 files. Nine PBS stated that most of this data is unique and irreplaceable.
Implications for Cloud Storage
This incident highlights the risks associated with relying on third-party cloud storage vendors, particularly regarding vendor stability and data ownership. The case underscores the challenges organizations can face in recovering data when a cloud provider ceases operations, emphasizing the importance of understanding underlying physical storage arrangements and data retrieval protocols.
✨ This summary was generated by AI from the outlets' reporting listed below. It is not independently verified and may contain errors — check the original sources. How BrevFeed works →
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How outlets covered it
Nine PBS, a St. Louis affiliate, sued Iron Mountain Data Centers to regain access to 50TB of archival data after its cloud storage provider, Open Source Storage (OSS), became unresponsive. A judge has ordered Iron Mountain to release the physical devices holding the data, with Nine PBS responsible for finding a third party to assist in retrieval. This case highlights the risks associated with third-party cloud storage and the challenges of data recovery when providers cease operations.
A judge has ordered data center provider Iron Mountain to cooperate with Nine PBS in retrieving a 70-year archive of cultural artifacts. This ruling follows Nine PBS's lawsuit against Iron Mountain after its cloud storage vendor, Open Source Storage (OSS), went out of business and cut off access to the data, which Iron Mountain physically hosted.
Nine PBS lost access to 50TB of archival data after its cloud storage vendor, Open Source Storage (OSS), ceased operations. The broadcaster is now suing Iron Mountain, where the data is physically stored, to prevent its deletion and ensure transfer to a new vendor. This situation highlights the risks associated with cloud storage vendor instability and data ownership disputes.