Cloud Tools: Transcode Video Formats with Encoding.com

by Sergey Bushik and Katherine VasilegaJanuary 20, 2012

This blog post overviews Encoding.com—a web-based transcoding service in the cloud—its pros, challenges, and recommended use.

Table of Contents

Encoding.com pros, cons, and recommended use

Encoding.com is the world’s largest cloud-based service that enables transcoding video into such formats as .mov, .avi, .wmv, .mp4, .3GP, .3G2, .mj2, .m4v, .flv, .mpg, .flv H.264, .flv VP6, .asf, and etc. In addition to video inputs, it also can convert popular image formats, including DPX, EXR, GIF, JPEG, JPEG-2000, PDF, PhotoCD, PNG, Postscript, SVG, and TIFF.

Pros

Among the service’s advantages are the following:

Encoding.com has several integration methods to match the encoding requirements: a powerful XML API for sophisticated workflow implementations into custom UGV (User-Generated Video) sites, content management systems, or desktop programs. It also features an easy-to-use watch folder designed for encoding large content libraries quickly and easily. Another good option is the ability to upload files from a local hard drive to enable encoding of personal videos.
Employing the solution, users get granular control to set the custom encoding parameters for multi-bitrate, frame rate, HD encoding, etc., or they can choose from the popular presets. Once completed, you only need to specify where to deliver the encoded files: FTP/SFTP, your CDN, or a cloud storage location.

Cons

The challenges a company may face when using Encoding.com include a limited number of video formats supported, as well as limited cloud platform integration options. A video can be processed with Encoding.com on the Amazon EC2 compute platform, if the target files are stored on Amazon S3. The tool also supports the Rackspace Cloud.

Recommended use

Encoding.com will fit companies that deal with large media data volumes. The service transcodes a video into multiple formats, so you don’t need to create and store additional versions of the video.

Sergey Bushik is an accomplished software engineer with 12+ years of experience in designing and building secure, scalable, and highly performant solutions. He has vast experience in creating multi-tier and multi-layered applications. In addition, Sergey can boast of a solid background in web development. He is a Sun Certified Enterprise Architect, a frequent speaker and participant of international conferences dedicated to big data, as well as an author of several NoSQL\NewSQL benchmarks.