A distinctive feature of multifunctional systems for supporting multimedia services on a single platform is the heterogeneity of incoming streams and requests, which requires optimization of resource use under physical constraints. In this regard, it is relevant to develop promising proposals for the functional structure and technical characteristics of complexes for storing and processing multi-format media data, which was the purpose of this study. Based on the laws of Moore, Amdahl, and Gustavson-Barsis, it is shown that the increase in the performance of such systems should be achieved not only by increasing the computing power and parallelization but also by optimizing the software used choosing its architecture, adequate technical requirements and optimizing the algorithms used. A list of promising proposals on the functional structure and technical characteristics of complexes for working with heterogeneous data is proposed, and their main modules and characteristics are considered.