The technologies used in video content storage and streaming have changed dramatically in recent years. Cloud transcoding is an advanced technology that stores, processes, and manages video content in the cloud. As we know, transcoding is a process of converting encoded video files from one format to another. The transcoding process can be processed in two different ways; either manually or by using an automated cloud transcoding service.
Cloud video transcoding is getting popular because of its scalability, cost-effectiveness, and flexibility. This technology is used for adaptive bitrate streaming. Transcoding in the cloud of an encoded video file allows it to be delivered to multiple devices with different file formats.
Since the technology is becoming popular, it’s necessary to know about cloud transcoding and why you need it. Let’s dive into it.
What is Cloud Transcoding?
Cloud video transcoding refers to converting digital video files from one format to another in a cloud computing environment. The cloud-based video transcoding is used to create different formats of media files. It converts the video into a smaller file size without sacrificing quality. When live streaming an event, you can’t transcode it multiple times to get different formats to maintain the video quality. Cloud-based media transcoding makes it possible to get an adaptive playback experience.
How Cloud Video Transcoding Works
The transcoding process in cloud video streaming services happens in a few steps. The whole process can be done in real-time rather than using transcoding software offline. In cloud-based transcoding, after the video encoding process, the file is uploaded to the cloud and stored. After that, the transcoding process begins.
From the transcoding settings, users can select the expected output formats. The settings allow you to choose a resolution, frame rate, and bit rate for each output format. After the transcoding process is done, users can access the transcoded files from their cloud storage. Cloud transcoding and dynamic adaptive streaming can be performed simultaneously.
Benefits of Cloud Video Transcoding
Video transcoding in the cloud has numerous advantages. Some of the most important ones are:
Cost-Effective: Cloud video transcoding costs much lower than traditional transcoding methods. This is because the infrastructure and equipment are already in place. No additional investments are needed to set up a transcoding facility.
Scalability: Another great feature of this advanced transcoding is that it is highly scalable. As the demand for videos increases, cloud transcoding can be scaled up quickly to meet those demands so that different streaming media players can get the desired output formats.
Flexibility: Cloud transcoding services provide maximum flexibility. When a digital format needs to support different players, platforms, and devices, cloud transcoding can help you do that. For example, your streaming may need to work with a MPEG DASH or HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) player. You can get these formats quickly without downloading extra video editing and transcoding software.
Wrapping up
It can be concluded that cloud video transcoding is a great technology that offers cost-effectiveness, scalability, and flexibility for video streaming. This advanced technology will continue to evolve and improve with advances in cloud computing. The transcoding of videos can be done quickly and cost-effectively through the cloud. So, cloud transcoding is the way forward in the adaptive streaming field.
