Categories
Distribution Video Technology

Are we heading for an MPEG-DASH and HEVC future?

At StreamingMedia.com   wrote:

It came as no surprise to anyone working in our industry that MPEG DASH and HEVC were the talk of this year’s IBC in Amsterdam — at least in the Connected World area of the show in Hall 14, in which IBC cordons off those of us whose interest in the synergy between broadcast and online comes firmly from the online angle.

What was a bit surprising, however, was the degree to which both the DASH delivery scheme and the HEVC codec (also known as H.265) were discussed as faits accomplis and debated as either “it’s about time” standards or a combined one-two punch that would be the death knell of innovation in the online video technology space.

I’ve discussed HEVC (High Efficiency Video codec) a.k.a H.265 before. MPEG-DASH is a new streaming media format. Given that a large percentage of delivery has moved to a real-time delivery over HTTP then a consistent real time delivery format is desirable as a standard. MPEG continues to refer to the standards body – the Motion Picture Expert Group – while DASH referrs to Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP. This is very similar to what Apple and others are using now for HLS (HTTP LIve Streaming, which is also adaptive).

So we’re looking at an evolution into the next generation of MPEG codec with a newly standardized real time delivery format. I like standards, particularly when there aren’t too many! This one feels very real:

But the combination of MPEG DASH and HEVC created a perfect storm in which it was quite clear that for every vendor in our space who feels that any sort of standard is anathema to the advance of both technological invention and capitalist progress, there are just as many who feel like agreeing upon a standard delivery system and corresponding codec will actually enable greater innovation to occur on different fronts. The fact that word came out just prior to IBC that the French government had “mandated” the use of MPEG DASH in all connected televisions gave ammunition to the anti-standards contingent — which, of course, includes a subset that also happens to be anti-European, or at least Francophobic. (As Siglin also reported, the reality is quite a bit more nuanced — the requirement applies only to France’s TNT 2.0 HbbTV connected TV scheme.)

Streaming Media are putting on a special MPEG-DASH mixer at the Streaming Media West Show in two weeks.

Categories
Media Consumption

Most people with HD TVs do not watch “true HD”.

Broadcasting & Cable (among others) are reporting a Neilsen report that:

New Nielsen data shows that more than three-quarters of all U.S. homes have HD TVs, up 14% from last year, and that nearly 40% of homes have multiple HD sets. Yet the same data shows that most viewing is still taking place in standard definition.

Categories
Business & Marketing

Yet Again, File Sharing Correlated To Biggest Buyers

While some in the legacy industries try and argue that “file sharers” are just thieves who do not want to pay for anything, facts (as in peer reviewed studies) stand in their way because study after study has show that File sharers correlate to the biggest buyers! 

Categories
Business & Marketing Interesting Technology

Using Analytics to Predict Hollywood Blockbusters

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2012/10/using_analytics_to_predict_hollywood_blockbusters.html

Traditionally movies got greenlit on the “gut feeling” of some executive. After failures like John Carter from Mars perhaps it’s time to consider some modern, data-intensive methods instead. (I love big data and what it can tell us.)

Categories
Business & Marketing Studio 2.0 The Business of Production

Monetizing BitTorrent helps Australian newspaper keep down video costs

Monetizing BitTorrent helps Australian newspaper keep down video costs

“Sydney Morning Herald publisher Fairfax was spooked by the escalating cost of licensing video for its new TV site. So now it’s adding cheaper content by legalising BitTorrent videos on producers’ behalf.”

Categories
Business & Marketing New Media The Business of Production

Crowdsourcing goes to Hollywood as Amazon makes movies

An article at Yahoo News – Crowdsourcing goes to Hollywood as Amazon makes movies – reveals that Amazon are taking a different approach to greenlighting movies and TV shows than the traditional studios.

Amazon are taking a more data-driven approach to developing and proceeding with projects, relying heavily on testing:

Categories
Apple The Business of Production

Is “Hollywood” ripe for disruption, or immune to it?

Last week Larry Jordan invited me on the Digital Production BuZZ to discuss two apparently conflicting articles:

Max Wessel on The Inevitable Disruption of Television and

Andrew Wallenstein on TV Studios too strong for Apple disruption. (Sorry about the Variety paywall.)

How to reconcile these seemingly contradictory reports?

Categories
Business & Marketing

A lesson in customer service: Apple vs UPS

While waiting for the delivery of an iPhone I’ve had the “joy” of experiencing both UPS customer service and Apple customer service over the same issue. First the facts:

Categories
Business & Marketing Media Consumption Monetizing

The Inevitable Disruption of Television

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2012/08/the_inevitable_disruption_of_t.html

Television as we know it is not going away any time soon, but it is going to be disrupted at some time: all industries are.

But even the largest industries enter periods of transformation — think of once-dominant railroads, wired phone lines, the postal service. The fact of the matter is that periodically, technologies or business model innovations allow start-ups to enter industries offering services that are generally cheaper and more accessible, but of far lower quality. Initially, these innovations are adopted only by the least demanding industry consumers or those who couldn’t afford to participate in existing markets (like the college students who use Reddit to find entertaining Youtube videos instead of paying for HBO). However, over time, these start-ups tend to invest in performance improvements in such a way that allows them to displace industry incumbents (the professionals who are cutting the proverbial cord in favor of Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Amazon Instant Video). This is the essence of what we call “disruptive innovation.” It’s transformed a number of industries and is starting to do the same in the world of television.

Read how Maxwell Wessell cut the cord and transformed his Television viewing.

Categories
Business & Marketing Item of Interest Monetizing

Video Metadata Practices to Boost SEO.

Video Metadata Practices to Boost SEO http://t.co/gBng5lRG

Video metadata has been read by search engines for some time but now there are more options: