Live Transcoder
CATV | IPTV | OTT
Encode | Transcode | Decode
Live Video & Audio Streams
Transcoder
Understanding OTT Encoders: Transforming Video Streaming
Introduction to OTT Encoders
As the demand for video streaming services skyrockets, the need for efficient and high-quality encoding solutions becomes paramount. An OTT Encoder (Over-The-Top Encoder) is at the heart of modern video streaming solutions, enabling the delivery of high-quality video content over the internet without relying on traditional broadcast, cable, or satellite television formats. This article delves into the functionalities and benefits of OTT Encoders, highlighting their integration with live transcoding, CATV, IPTV, and other video streaming solutions.
Key Features of OTT Encoders
Live Transcoder
A critical component of OTT encoders is the Live Transcoder. It enables real-time conversion of video content into various formats suitable for different devices and network conditions. This ensures seamless viewing experiences for users, whether they’re watching on a smartphone, tablet, or smart TV.
Integration with CATV and IPTV
OTT encoders are versatile, supporting both CATV (Cable Television) and IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) systems. They facilitate the distribution of video content over traditional cable networks and modern internet-based platforms, making them indispensable for hybrid distribution networks.
Advanced Video Streaming Solutions
OTT encoders support a range of video streaming solutions, employing advanced codecs like H.264/AVC and H.265/HEVC. These codecs are essential for compressing video files without compromising quality, enabling efficient storage and transmission.
Hardware Acceleration
To enhance performance, many OTT encoders utilize Hardware Acceleration. This technology offloads intensive processing tasks to specialized hardware components, resulting in faster encoding times and reduced latency.
Support for Streaming Protocols
OTT encoders are compatible with various Streaming Protocols such as HLS (HTTP Live Streaming), RTMP (Real-Time Messaging Protocol), and SRT (Secure Reliable Transport). These protocols ensure reliable and secure video transmission across diverse network environments.
Broadcast Encoding and Transcoding
In the realm of broadcasting, OTT encoders serve as Broadcast Encoders and Broadcast Transcoders, enabling the transmission of live and on-demand video content. They are integral to IPTV Contribution and IP Video Distribution, ensuring high-quality video delivery across different platforms.
Cloud and On-Premise Solutions
OTT encoders offer flexible deployment options, including On-Premise SRT Servers and Cloud Streaming solutions. Services like AWS SRT Feeder and DigitalOcean SRT Receiver facilitate scalable and reliable video streaming, catering to diverse organizational needs.
Enhancing Streaming with SRT Protocol
The SRT Protocol is crucial for Low Latency Streaming and Real-time Video Delivery. It provides secure and reliable transport, making it ideal for Remote Production, Live Broadcast Contribution, and Multi-Camera Production setups.
Exclusive Server Solutions
For organizations requiring dedicated resources, Exclusive Servers ensure uninterrupted and high-performance video streaming. These solutions support 4K UHD and HD content, leveraging HEVC and H.264 Codecs for superior video quality.
Specialized Encoders for Social Media
OTT encoders also cater to social media platforms with specialized solutions like YouTube Encoder and Facebook Encoder, optimizing video content for these popular channels.
Conclusion
OTT Encoders are pivotal in the modern video streaming landscape, offering robust solutions for live transcoding, IPTV, CATV, and more. Their support for advanced codecs, hardware acceleration, diverse streaming protocols, and both cloud and on-premise deployment options makes them versatile tools for delivering high-quality, low-latency video content. Whether for broadcasting, remote production, or social media streaming, OTT encoders ensure seamless, real-time video delivery across various platforms and devices.
WEB TRANSCODER GUI
WEB SETTINGS GUI
Live sports events attract large audiences who watch on a range of devices with varying network conditions. Live transcoders convert high-definition feeds into multiple resolutions and bitrates to cater to different viewers, ensuring a seamless viewing experience whether on a large screen TV or a mobile device.
Live transcoders are essential in various applications where real-time video conversion is required to ensure compatibility, quality, and smooth delivery across different platforms and devices
Key Features of Live Transcoders
1 Real-Time Transcoding
- Description: Converts live video streams from one format, resolution, or bitrate to another in real time.
- Benefit: Ensures live content is accessible on various devices and under different network conditions without significant delays.
2 Multi-Format Output
- Description: Supports multiple output formats such as H.264, H.265 for video, and AAC, MP3, and Opus for audio.
- Benefit: Increases compatibility with a wide range of playback devices and platforms.
3 Resolution and Bitrate Adaptation
- Description: Adjusts the resolution (e.g., 1080p, 720p, 480p) and bitrate (e.g., high, medium, low) of the output streams.
- Benefit: Ensures smooth playback by matching the video quality to the viewer’s device capabilities and network conditions.
4 Adaptive Bitrate Streaming (ABR)
- Description: Creates multiple bitrate versions of the same stream, allowing players to switch between them based on network performance.
- Benefit: Reduces buffering and improves viewer experience by dynamically adjusting to available bandwidth.
5 Protocol Conversion
- Description: Supports various streaming protocols such as RTMP, HLS, DASH, SRT, and UDP .
- Benefit: Enables delivery to different streaming platforms and devices, ensuring broad compatibility.
6 Scalability
- Description: Handles an increasing number of streams and viewers without degradation in performance.
- Benefit: Supports large-scale events with high viewer counts, ensuring reliable delivery.
7 Low Latency
- Description: Minimizes the delay between the live event and the viewer.
- Benefit: Critical for real-time applications like live sports, gaming, and interactive broadcasts.
8 Content Protection
- Description: Incorporates AES-128 simple encryption DRM (Digital Rights Management) and encryption technologies.
- Benefit: Secures live content from unauthorized access and distribution.
9 On-Premises Deployment
- Description: Offers flexibility in deployment options to suit different operational requirements.
- Benefit: Provides scalability and ease of management with On-Premises solutions or control and customization with on-premises setups.
10 Hardware Acceleration (optional)
- Description: Utilizes GPU-based encoding (e.g., NVIDIA NVENC) to speed up transcoding processes.
- Benefit: Enhances performance, allowing for more streams and higher quality without overwhelming CPU resources.
Benefits of Using Live Transcoders
1 Enhanced Viewer Experience
- Benefit: Adaptive bitrate streaming and resolution adjustment ensure viewers get the best possible quality based on their device and network conditions, reducing buffering and interruptions.
2 Increased Reach and Compatibility
- Benefit: Multi-format and multi-protocol support enable streams to be delivered to a diverse range of devices and platforms, maximizing audience reach.
3 Operational Efficiency
- Benefit: Real-time transcoding and scalable infrastructure reduce the need for multiple redundant encoders and simplify the streaming workflow, lowering operational costs.
4 Content Monetization
- Benefit: High-quality, secure streams attract more viewers and reduce churn, supporting various monetization models like subscriptions, pay-per-view, and ads.
5 Flexibility and Scalability
- Benefit: Cloud-based transcoders offer flexible scaling to handle spikes in viewership, making them ideal for large live events and dynamic audience sizes.
6 Reduced Latency
- Benefit: Low latency features are essential for interactive applications like live sports, gaming, auctions, and real-time communications, enhancing viewer engagement.
7 Security and Compliance
- Benefit: AES-128 simple encryption DRM and encryption protect content from piracy and unauthorized access, ensuring compliance with content licensing agreements.
8 Cost-Effectiveness
- Benefit: Efficient transcoding reduces bandwidth and storage requirements, lowering the overall cost of delivering high-quality streams.
Input Interfaces
- Multiple Gigabit IP interface, SD/HD SDI with raw and compressed audio
Input Stream
- TS/ UDP (Unicast and multicast SPTS and MPTS)
- TS/SRT (Unicast and multicast SPTS and MPTS)
- TS/RTP (Unicast and multicast SPTS and MPTS)
- TS/HTTP-SPTS and MPTS
- RTMP, RTMPS, HLS, DASH
- H.264 elementary-Annex B MPEG2 PS. MPEG TS,
- MOV, MP4, MXF, MKV,FLV
Input Video Codecs
- MPEG2-ML/HL 4:2:2
- MPEG4 SP/ASP
- H264 – BP/MP/HP – 4:2:2 10Bit
- Apple Prores
- HEVC
- VC1, MJPEG
- Fixed and variable frame rate
- Standard and non-standard resolution
- 1080p@60 upto 25Mbps for live delivery
- Error resilience and concealment for erroneous input
- Input video frame skip detection
- Video pass through
Input Audio Codecs
- MPEG1 Layer2 Y& Layer3
- Dolby™-AC3
- AAC-MPEG2
- MPEG4 (LC, HEAAC, HEAACv2),
- MPEG4 ALS
- LPCM
- Up to 8 channels 24 bit, 96KHz audio
- Up to 96KHz sampling frequency
- Audio pass through
Metadata
- CEA608/708 Closed captioning pass through
- SCTE 35/104 Cue-points pass through for TS
Control & Monitoring
- Auto sensing of incoming media, media info
- Input stream view on web console
- Input stream capture
- Web based UI
- Thumbnails preview on web console
- Tile based preview for monitoring
- Express Job Settings
- Pre and post job scripts
- Dynamic parameter changing while job is running
- System configuration backup and restore
- Fans and temperature monitoring
Platform Specs
- Runs on COTS Intel™ Platform
- Ubuntu 22.4
- Based on 1RU, 2RU, 4RU chassis
- Optional RPS and RAID
- Upto 6 Gigabit ports & 6 TB local storage
Output Interfaces
- Multiple Gigabit IP interface, SD/HD SDI out
Output Stream
- TS/ UDP (Unicast and multicast SPTS and MPTS)
- TS/SRT (Unicast and multicast SPTS and MPTS)
- TS/RTP (Unicast and multicast SPTS and MPTS)
- RTMP, RTMPS, HLS, DASH
- RTMP uplink to popular CDNs
- TS, MP4, MOV, FLV, MKV
Output Video Codecs
- H.264
- HEVC
Output Audio Codecs
- MPEG 1 Layer2/3
- AAC-MPEG4 (LC, HEAAC, HEAACv2)
- MPEG4 ALS
- Up to 8 channel, 24 bit audio
- Up to 96 KHz sampling frequency
Pre-processing
- De interlacing through BOB, Motion adaptive
- Perceptual quality based video scaler
- Standard and non-standard resolution
Encoding Features
- Look ahead based encoding
- Low latency encoding & Sub-second Glass to Glass delay
- Deblocking filter
- CBR, VBR and constrained VB streams
- Scene change detection & characteristics based encoding
- Configurable display aspect ratio and preserving DAR during scaling
- Multi language/track audio coding in a single program
- Upto 8 channel, 24 bit audio encoding
Metadata
- CEA608/708 Closed captioning pass through
- SCTE 35/104 Cue-points pass through for TS
Systems
- Express Job Settings
- Dynamic parameter changing while job is running
- System configuration backup and restore
- Auto restart of jobs in unrecoverable errors
- Log and Notification alerts
- Real time health statistics
- Input stream available indicator
- SNMP
- System dashboard with realtime statistics of CPU, Network, Jobs, Memory etc.,