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Jan Ozer

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I help companies train new technical hires in streaming media-related positions; I also help companies optimize their codec selections and encoding stacks and evaluate new encoders and codecs. I am a contributing editor to Streaming Media Magazine, writing about codecs and encoding tools. I have written multiple authoritative books on video encoding, including Video Encoding by the Numbers: Eliminate the Guesswork from your Streaming Video (https://amzn.to/3kV6R1j) and Learn to Produce Video with FFmpeg: In Thirty Minutes or Less (https://amzn.to/3ZJih7e). I have multiple courses relating to streaming media production, all available at https://bit.ly/slc_courses. I currently work as www.netint.com as a Senior Director in Marketing.

The Quality Cost of Low-Latency Transcoding

Figure shows the different components to live streaming latency.

While low-latency transcoding sounds desirable, low-latency transcode settings can reduce quality and may not noticeably impact latency. Reducing latency has been a major focus for many live producers, and appropriately so, particularly for events that viewers can watch via other media, like sporting events available through satellite or cable TV. However, it’s important to understand that transcoding latency contributes minimally …

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NAB Session on AI in Video Streaming

Like most encoding professionals, I’ve followed AI-related streaming advancements for the last few years. I’m presenting a session entitled “Beyond the Hype: A Critical Look at AI in Video Streaming” at Dan Rayburn’s Streaming Summit at NAB in Las Vegas on Monday, April 15, from 1:30 PM to 2:00 PM PST (room W110). I will cover ingest to playback, including …

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Jan Ozer Becomes Unrestricted Free Agent

Technical Emmy won by NETINT.

Watch out Saquon! Sorry for the spring training, pre-combine sports reference, but it seems appropriate.  I’m parting company with NETINT effective March 30, 2024. I want to thank CEO Alex Liu and my boss, Mark Donnigan, for the opportunity to work with NETINT for the last 18 months. One of my initial responsibilities was developing NETINT’s editorial strategy and increasing …

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Common Errors Obscured by Automated Video Quality Assessment

Automated quality testing should include low-frame scoring.

This article discusses five common errors that can be obscured by automated video quality assessment scripts and how to avoid them.  Most video producers use some measure of automated testing in their codec or encoder comparisons or during normal production. While automated testing is essential, it’s easy to make the five following errors if you don’t spot-check your results. The …

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Five Codec-Related Techniques to Cut Bandwidth Costs

Rating techniques that cut bandwidth costs.

The mandate for streaming producers hasn’t changed since we delivered RealVideo streams targeted at 28.8 modems; that is, we must produce the absolute best quality video at the lowest possible bandwidth. With cost control top of mind for many streaming producers, let’s explore five codec-related options to cut bandwidth costs while maintaining quality. For each, I’ll consider the factors summarized …

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Single-Pass vs Two-Pass VBR: Which is Better?

Let’s start this article with a quiz regarding how the quality and encoding speed of two-pass VBR (variable bitrate encoding) compares to single-pass VBR (that’s right, VBR in both cases). Choose the best answer. Two-pass takes twice as long as single-pass but delivers significantly better overall quality. Two-pass takes slightly longer than single-pass but delivers significantly better quality. Two-pass takes …

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Updated Lessons for Video Quality Metrics Course

Moscow State University's Video Quality Measurement Tool analyzing five files. This program is featured in our video quality metrics course.

We’ve updated several lessons in our Video Quality Metrics course, including some relating to the Moscow State University Video Quality Measurement Tool.  The Moscow State University (MSU) Video Quality Measurement Tool (VQMT) is a tool that I use almost every day to analyze and compare encoded files. Our course, Computing and Using Video Quality Metrics: A Course for Encoding Professionals, …

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My FFmpeg-Related New Year’s Resolution: Document Before I Test

My typical workflow for testing-related articles and reports is to create the command string, run the tests, analyze the results, and then write or create the presentation. Since encoding is often so time-consuming, and I’m always in a hurry, I tend to quickly create the command strings with minimal thought, then run the tests, analyze the results, and start to …

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Transcoding UGC: ASICs Are the Lowest Cost Option

The predominant use for ASIC-based transcoders like NETINT’s Quadra Video Processing Unit (VPU) has been live transcoding for live 4K60P HDR streaming, cloud gaming, interactive video applications, and other high-volume applications. In this post, we explore using Quadra VPUs for large-scale VOD transcoding for applications like user-generated content sites and social media. As you probably know, both Meta and Google …

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Understanding the Economics of Transcoding

A real-world comparison of the cost per stream and OPEX associated with different transcoding techniques.

Whether your business model is FAST or subscription-based premium content, your success depends upon your ability to deliver a high-quality viewing experience while relentlessly reducing costs. Transcoding is one of the most expensive production-related costs and the ultimate determinant of video quality, so obviously plays a huge role on both sides of this equation. This article identifies the most relevant …

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