Ever since the iPad announcement, the inter-relationships between HTML5, Flash, H.264 and Ogg Theora have been intriguing me, so I spent last week trying to figure it all out. The result is The Future of Web Video, Part 1; HTML5? Someday. Ogg? Probably not, over at the Digital Content Producer web site. It’s an article that’s bound to irritate lots …
Read More »H.264 Main or High Profile? Use High says Ben Waggonner
Interesting line of questions on the Advanced Streaming List recently. One producer shared that he was encoding using the following parameters: 768kbps512×288H.264 Main Profile Level 3.1 Microsoft’s Ben Waggoner, author of Compression for Great Video and Audio, who has an encyclopedic knowledge of compression related matters, responded: “High Profile instead of Main Profile; decode complexity is the same, and you …
Read More »An essential gizmo for Mac video producers
This is not an earthshaking post, but I thought I would share it anyway. I’ve never been a fan of Apple’s decision to use FireWire 800 adapters on their most recent lines of computers since it meant that I couldn’t connect my camcorders to them without an adapter. I’ve resisted purchasing a FireWire 800 to 400 adapter because I have …
Read More »What’s the right keyframe interval?
Interesting post came from the StreamingMedia Advanced list today: Question: Anyone have any advise on key frame placement in h264 flash? I felt like I should know the answer to this, so I pulled together the following: Answer: Interesting question. For single file streaming, make sure that keyframes at scene changes are enabled. In terms of interval, ESPN uses one …
Read More »H.264 Licensing and the X.264 codec
Ever since MPEG-LA announced their policy of not charging royalties for H.264 video distributed free over the Internet, I’ve been getting a bunch of emails, so I thought I would share them. I’m not inviting more emails on this topic, by they way, unless you want to tell me something that you know (as in, you’re an intellectual property attorney, …
Read More »The Moving Picture: A Tale of Three iPads
Apple’s recent iPad announcement had a strong impact on three groups: broadcasters, technology enthusiasts, and just about anyone concerned with the survival of the newspaper industry. Since discussions in these areas provide a great view of the iPad’s strengths and weaknesses, I thought that I would detail them here. The iPad is best likened to a large iPod touch; though …
Read More »Shooting with the Canon ESO 7D
I just spent about a month with the Canon EOS 7D, specifically to evaluate its HD video shooting capabilities. The results were very impressive, with amazing depth of field, and relatively low noise in low light situations. You can read my review here. Here’s a video I shot of my daughter Rosie, shopping online on my HP notebook computer. I’m …
Read More »Streaming Production and Flash Delivery Workshop in Manhattan on March 23, 2010
Lisa Larson-Kelly and Jan Ozer will be hosting the Streaming Production and Flash Delivery Workshop on March 23, 2010, at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. The workshop will feature two tracks, Streaming Production and Flash Delivery, each comprised of two ½ day courses. The workshop courses detail the complete streaming production and delivery workflow, from set …
Read More »MPEG-LA H.264 Royalty Policy for Free Internet Video – FREE!
MPEG LA’s AVC License Will Continue Not to Charge Royalties for Internet Video that is Free to End Users (DENVER, CO, US – 2 February 2010) – MPEG LA announced today that its AVC Patent Portfolio License will continue not to charge
Read More »Interview with MPEG-LA’s CEO re: H.264 Royalties
I just got off the phone with MPEG LA President and CEO Larry Horn regarding MPEG-LA’s announcement that the AVC Patent Portfolio License will continue not to charge royalties for free Internet video through December 31, 2016. Here are the details of the Q&A. Ozer: You made a lot of folks happy today, Larry, congratulations. Horn: Thanks. We’ve been getting …
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