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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.

How to Reduce Encoding Time by Up to 40% With Negligible Quality Loss

Reducing the reference frame setting from 16 to 1 when using x.264’s veryslow preset decreased encoding time by 46% on ten 2-minute test files while dropping the average VMAF score from 96.06 to 95.97, a decrease of less than .001. If you used the Medium preset, at the default setting of 3 reference frames, changing to ref=1 would drop encoding …

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Lesson of the Week: Two Data Points for Producing Effective Webinars (and a Free Download)

As the producer of webinars and virtual training events for Streaming Media Magazine and Streaming Learning Center, I’m always interested in information that helps me produce more effective events. A recent report from Bluejeans, the Verizon-owned video conference provider, provided several interesting data points. By way of background, the report discussed survey data collected by IDG from 200 respondents in a …

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Webinar: H.264 Encoding for Newbies and Optimizers

The webinar is over; thanks to all who registered and attended. You can watch the recorded version below. The handout is available here. Description: This free webinar teaches streaming media novices how to produce high-quality H.264 output delivered via efficient encoding ladders that optimize quality, compatibility, and bitrate efficiency. The webinar will also introduce the concept of per-title encoding and …

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Lesson of the Week: Per-Title Encoding in 6.2 Dimensions

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Engineer and IT Professional Recommend Streaming Media 101

Happy to share two new five-star reviews for Streaming Media 101, the only online training course available for onboarding new streaming media professionals, whether coming from the IT discipline or via engineering. Engineer Chris Joyce commented, As an engineer, I wasn’t sure what to expect and didn’t want to pay for some fluffy sales-type material. Jan’s course didn’t disappoint as he …

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Computing Breakeven on New Codec Deployments

This article and the associated Google Sheet present an analytical model for computing breakeven on new codec deployments.  On a LinkedIn post here, Johan Skaneby asked: Technical comparisons and documentation on different codec performance are very interesting and important, but all development of technologies are always closely related to market requirements and business models. My experience is that the challenge …

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Bitmovin Licenses Training Content from the Streaming Learning Center to Include in Internal LMS

Bitmovin (https://bitmovin.com/) has partnered with Jan Ozer, a recognized expert in streaming media and encoding, to provide its new engineering and solutions employees with his Streaming Media 101 course (https://courses.streaminglearningcenter.com/). The course–which has been fully integrated into Bitmovin’s internal learning management system–provides industry-specific content that helps new Bitmovin employees quickly and seamlessly ramp up to full productivity in their technical …

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Video Camera and Webcam Framing for Live and VOD Productions

Framing is the act of placing the subject within the camera frame. Do it correctly and the video looks just like your viewers are used to seeing on TV. Mess up here and you compromise the quality of your video from the start. This 12:42 video teaches you artistic fundamentals like rule-of-thirds positioning, head, look, and lead room, and definitions …

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Beginner’s Guide to Codecs

This post provides an introduction to video codecs. It’s an entry-level article designed to help streaming newbies understand what codecs are, what they do, how to compare them, and why they succeed or fail.  Video codecs are compression technologies that reduce the bitrate of digital video to manageable sizes. Video codecs are not only central to streaming, but they’re also …

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Beginner’s Guide to Buying a Camera for Live Streaming

This post discusses factors to consider when choosing a camera for four types of live events. It’s adapted from training materials prepared for a live streaming boot camp I’m producing at Streaming Media Connect on Tuesday, February 23: 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. (ET) / 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. (PT). I’ll be releasing a course on live streaming by the …

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