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Live Transcoder

Live H.264 / Flash Transcoder

 

INPUT:
- MPEG-2 stream
- WM stream

OUTPUT:
- H264 RTP

- H264 RTMP

- Optional Media Server delivers to iPhone, Silverlight, Flash

Live Demo (when available)

White Paper

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The Discover Video Live Transcoder (DVT) receives live MPEG-2 video multicast video streams and standard Windows Media streams and converts them in real time to live H.264 streams.Transcoder Up to 30 simultaneous transcode streams are supported.

For organizations that have deployed live MPEG-2 multicast from VBrick and others, or have live MPEG-2 from satellite links such as Exterity, the Live Transcoder allows you to deliver your existing live video to viewers over the public Internet  The Live Transcoder can achieve better than 100:1 compression, allowing you to convert a high speed live MPEG-2 video to any bit rate you desire, such as 300 Kbps.

For organizations that have deployed standard Windows Media streaming (unicast or multicast), the DVT allows you to stream in one format, yet deliver your stream in multiple formats.
  • Educational Institutions -- Deliver your existing live MPEG-2 TV channels to other schools and buildings using the public Internet
  • Transportation Departments -- Send your live highway surveillance video feeds to multiple districts, state officials, emergency workers, etc.
  • Commercial Organizations -- Add public Internet or private network low speed delivery to your existing MPEG-2 infrastructure
  • Government / Defense -- Transmit one, some, or all existing live MPEG-2 video feeds to remote locations over virtually any network, including cellular.
  • Commercial Broadcasters -- Use your existing MEPG-2 Transport Stream infrastructure to deliver simultaneous webcasting for commercial linear broadcasting over the web, or for monitoring you feeds.  Customers that use VC-1/Windows Media (e.g. U-Verse) can instantly deliver the video in Flash format.
  • Satellite Receivers -- Receive direct broadcasts from satellite and use IP receivers (e.g. Exterity) which will send each channel as a MPEG-2 stream. Rather than multicasting high bandwidth (e.g. 5 Mbps) streams, deliver using H.264 multicast directly from the DVT, and/or deliver over the public Internet via Flash player.  

 

High Quality
Organizations typically selected MPEG-2 video to achieve broadcast quality video distribution.  MPEG-2 requires 3 to 8 Mbps to achieve this quality, which is not an issue in multicast-enabled local area networks. H.264 provides an order of magnitude improvement in compression efficiency and can deliver the same quality at about half the bandwidth.  Stunning live transcoded video delivery can be achieved at 500 Kbps, very good quality at bit rates as low as 200 Kbps, and applications such as video monitoring are supported at rates as low as 40 Kbps. Of course, you can also maintain existing broadcast quality and even send H.264 via multicast at substantially reduced streaming rates.

Save A Lot Of Money
If you have existing MPEG-2 encoders (e.g. VBrick 6000 series), the Live Transcoder can be much more cost effective than replacing the MPEG-2 encoder with a H.264 encoder.  The Live Transcoder can cost under $1000 per transcoded stream vs. many thousands of dollars for a new encoder appliance.

Moreover, any organization that could not deliver their live MPEG-2 video to a remote location because they did not have sufficient bandwidth can now deliver it with ease.

Send your new or existing live MPEG-2 video via multicast within your LAN, and use the Live Transcoder to deliver your live video virtually anywhere via your private network or via the public Internet.

Flash or QuickTime
The output of the Live Transcoder is H.264 at user-definable video rate, frame rate, resolution, and audio rate. Per industry standards and conventions, each output stream may be standard RTP or Adobe RTMP.  For RTP, the Live Transcoder automatically creates a SDP file that you may use on a compatible streaming server such as Darwin, Helix, Wowza, etc.  and view via H.264 players such as Apple QuickTime player. For Adobe RTMP, the Live Transcoder does a live "push" to a compatible Flash server such as Adobe, Wowza, etc. and you can view your live video using Flash player.

Integration
The Live Transcoder behavior can be configured with simple XML files.  This makes it very easy to integrate with 3rd party and custom system. No "SDK" is required.

Reliability
Live Transcoder runs as a Windows Service that automatically starts when Windows starts. The system automatically recovers if the source MPEG-2 multicast stops and starts, allowing you to control your stream by simply starting or stopping the source multicast.  The system has been designed to run 7 x 24.

Simultaneous Capacity
Depending on the host platform, up to 30 simultaneous live transcodes are possible.  Discover Video offers the transcoder in several platforms, and as a software system for your own computer. The actual capacity depends on the input and output settings (fewer live transcodes are possible at higher resolutions and rates).

Optional Wowza Media Serverwowza
The DVT can come with an optional custom Wowza Media Sever.  The server will automatically detect your live transcoded video and deliver directly to iPhone / iPad / iTouch devices, to Flash Players, and to Silverlight players.

With the optional Wowza server, you have one platform that allows you to stream your MPEG-2 and Windows Media streams to virtually all playback devices. 


digital engine
Mini Transcoder
  • Mini Live Transcoder -- supports up to 5 simultaneous transcodes on one compact mini platform (6.54" x 1.89" x 6.18")
  • Standard Live Transcoder -- supports up to 10 simultaneous transcodes in 1U of rack space. Quad core server.
  • High Density Live Transcoder -- supports up to 30 simultaneous transcodes in 1U of rack space. Dual, six core  server
  • Live Transcoder Software -- capacity depends on the host CPU performance (operates on most WinXP /Win7 / WinServer200X computers).  The DVT software system is available in the following capacities:
    • 1 Channel
    • 5 Channels
    • 10 Channels
    • 30 Channels
FAQ
  • Does the Live Transcoder support file recording?
    • Not currently. The Live Transcoder delivers live H.264 as a RTP or RTMP stream. Recording can be done by receiving and recording the live stream.
  • Does the Live Transcoder support Adobe Flash?
    • Yes. If RTMP is selected, you can send your live transcoded video to a Flash Media Server, Wowza server, compatible CDN, etc. You can receive the live video using Adobe Flash Player 10 or above.
    • We do not currently support live RTMP input.
  • Does the Live Transcoder support multicast output?
    • Yes. For multicast output, you would use RTP and set the output multicast address and ports. The Live Transcoder then creates the necessary SDP file which you use to view the live video (i.e. via QuickTime player).
  • Can I use the Live Transcoder with other live MPEG-2 video sources?
    • Yes, the Live Transcoder supports standard MPEG-2 Transport Stream ("raw" format), as delivered by many encoders and systems.  You can check compatibility by using the free VBrick StreamPlayer, or the free VLC player.
  • Can I input standard WM streams?
    • Yes, most standard WM streams are supported.
    • Server-side playlists are not currently supported, although this is under development (as of 8/2010)
  • Can I input any MPEG-2 stream?
    • Not exactly. DVT supports MPEG-2 Transport Streams only. There are some streams that are sent in Program Stream or other formats that will not work.
    • The MPEG-2 audio must be conventional MPEG1/Layer2.  AC3 audio is not currently supported (as of 8/2010)
  • Can I stream to iPhones / iPad / iTouch?
    • Yes, using the optional Wowza Media server.  The Media Server will stream directly to players from the server. You may also be able to push or pull the stream to a CDN for increased scale.
  • Does the system support satellite broadcasts?
    • Yes. The system work with direct satellite receivers such as Exterity and others.
  •  

Price The DVT is priced at less than US $1,000 per instance. Higher capacity license costs less. Optional custom Wowza Media Server at additional cost.