July 19, 2010
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By skip in Flash, Innovation, Video
Thanks in large part to Steve Jobs, HTML5 has been getting a lot of attention over the past few months. HTML5 is an emerging standard that covers video and too, provides new tools that allow Web browsers to largely replicate functionality provided today by runtimes such as Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight. Since HTML5 requires the developers of the major browsers, including Microsoft, Mozilla, Google, and Opera, to implement the standard,differences in implementation and incompatibilities can emerge. These differences also relate to how HTML5 video is supported by the various browsers. At present there is no single HTML5 compatible video format supported by all browsers on the market.
To learn more about HTML5, we suggest checking out http://diveintohtml5.org/, an excellent resource for developers and novices alike. For video-related topics, check out the subsection at http://diveintohtml5.org/video.html.
July 15, 2010
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By mangesh in Innovation, Live Streaming, Products
Reality is stranger than fiction and right now, in 2010, I can faintly hear Kirk utter a famous line from an episode of Star Trek, “…a dream that became a reality and spread throughout the stars…” Or in this case, two dreams.
Two days ago we at BitGravity announced a partnership with Palo Alto-based ViVu in which together, we’ll bring 1:100k HD video conferencing and collaboration to desktops around the globe. Video-based communication and conferencing is not a new concept. Yes, there’s been discussion about videophones for a long time and they’ve never become a reality. But then, tablet computers were a well-worn concept when Apple launched the iPad earlier this year. Video-based communication, conferencing and collaboration is finally coming of age just as did tablet computing. Why now? A number of vectors are driving the conditions for this perfect storm:
- Computers and smartphones now have the horsepower to encode video streams in real-time
- Adequate bandwidth and Quality of Service in now available in the cloud to transmit video streams with minimal latency
- Adoption of open standards has helped make the ‘any stream on any device’ vision a reality
- Growing bandwidth and other capabilities (e.g. cameras) are now available on edge devices
We are still some ways off from an experience that combines the easy-of-use of a Skype call, the quality of a Cisco Telepresence video conference and the convergence of usage across office computers, family room TVs, and 4G smartphones. However, there is no doubt that we will see a rapid change in how consumer–as well as enterprises–use video for communication, conferencing and collaboration in the near future. The days of installing expensive equipment and setting up dedicated video communication channels are numbered; the big wave will be about ubiquitous and cost-effective video communication.
BitGravity brings some key building blocks to the rapidly evolving world of cloud-based video communication. We have a unique cloud-based fabric for setting up and transporting real-time data streams across the global with minimal latency. This cloud-based fabric has very high throughput and scalability, is protocol agnostic and highly resilient and fault tolerant, making it ideal for a variety of real-time interactive applications including high quality video broadcasts, video conferencing and collaboration.
We are partnering with innovative application companies such as ViVu, which has developed a video-centric desktop conferencing and collaboration application. By deploying ViVu’s application on BitGravity’s global HD video network, we can offer enterprise customers a very compelling solution that can be used for a variety of applications, from high-quality global CEO broadcasts to multi-person video conferences enriched with application and desktop sharing. This is an exciting direction, so watch this space!
July 13, 2010
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By skip in Announcements, Innovation, Live Streaming, Products
We at BitGravity are pleased to announce a partnership with ViVu in which we’re developing the world’s first massively scalable HD video conferencing application. By combining HD live streaming on our global, carrier-grade network with ViVu’s video conferencing and collaboration application, enterprises and organizations around the globe will soon be able to conduct video-centric conferences in HD.
Unlike traditional Web-based meeting applications or current video conferencing solutions, this new application from BitGravity and ViVu will feature HD video from 1:1 to 1:100k as the centerpiece of the experience and will incorporate numerous valuable collaboration features as well, including chat, displaying presentations, and more.
Read our press release for more information.
June 18, 2010
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By skip in Uncategorized
If you’ve worked with other CDNs, you probably understand how painful getting responsive, effective support can be. BitGravity is the first and only CDN built from the ground up specifically to deliver HD and SD VOD and live streams around the globe. Because of our focus on video, our customers expect and receive a level of service not provided by alternative providers. Here’s what we offer:
* Presales Support: Our prospective customers span the range from organizations new to video delivery to global media companies wanting to monetize video assets. Regardless of experience or size, BitGravity spends the time needed up front to ensure there’s a great fit.
* Video Expertise: Because BitGravity is the only CDN focused on VOD and live streaming, our team has the knowledge and experience to quickly and effectively help you address any issues that arise. 24/7/365 Phone & Email Support: We’re here to help our customers by phone and email around the clock.
* We Go the Extra Mile: We’re global, yet we’re eager to keep you a satisfied customer. Have a question about encoding, reducing latency, or codecs? We go the extra mile to get and keep you on BitGravity.
* It’s Included: Unlike an Web-only storage and CDN provider, 24/7/365 phone and email support is included for all our customers—even those that take advantage of our bundled VOD and live packages.
Contact us to find out how support and everything else, is different with BitGravity.
June 14, 2010
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By skip in Uncategorized
In February, 19 Entertainment, the media powerhouse that created ‘American Idol’, launched ‘If I Can Dream’—a Web reality show that invites the world to follow five aspiring artists as they pursue their Hollywood dreams. At the core of the show is a unique system for online broadcasting that provides the audience with a choice of watching the contestants through 60 cameras positioned throughout the ‘If I Can Dream’ House and streaming live 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
19 Entertainment worked closely with partners to innovate, create, and execute ‘If I Can Dream’, including BitGravity which provided proof of concept support and provides 60 HD on-demand live streams to the show’s visitors from 211 countries around the globe. In building this window into the lives of aspiring artists, ‘If I Can Dream’ and BitGravity have introduced a whole new way of producing and delivering live content.
Check out the aspiring stars live.
May 27, 2010
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By skip in Flash, Products
If you want to quickly and easily post FLV and H.264 videos on your site, there’s no reason to go through the hassle of installing complicated Flash players. We at BitGravity like the Flow and JW Players, however, our BitGravity Player 6 is a free Flash player and is as simple as it gets. Enter the path for your video, click ‘Finished’, and the embed code for the player is yours. That’s it.
You can also add your own logo, color theme, and advertising. That’s something you don’t get when you embed Vimeo or Viddler videos, and it opens up new opportunities for video content producers to monetize their content.
Check out BitGravity Player 6