Web Audio/Video

Services > Web Audio/Video

One of our specialized services is the digitizing and encoding of video and audio for the web. We take your video and audio in just about any format and put it on the web for your audience to watch or listen to.

Acceptable source audio/video formats

Digital video optimization for web-compatible media
We can take the digital version of your video (with audio) and optimize it for the web.
Formats: Uncompressed QuickTime, MPEGII

Analog video transfer to digital video and optimization for web-compatible media
We take a recording of your video (with audio) and convert it into a digital format optimized for the web.
Formats: DV*, MiniDV*, Hi-8*, DVD, VHS, BETA*

Digital audio optimization for web-compatible media
We take the digital version of your audio and optimize it for the web.
Formats: wave, Uncompressed QuickTime, Uncompressed AVI, AAC (mp4), mp3

Analog audio transfer to digital audio and optimization for web-compatible media
We take a recording of your audio and convert it into a digital format optimized for the web.
Formats: audio tape, mp3 player, CD, Audio CD

If audio/video specialists are responsible for the original version of you video or audio, we communicate directly with them to get the highest quality version of the your media.

Web-optimized audio/video formats

There are several formats for delivering video and audio for the web. They include Windows Media, QuickTime, RealMedia, and Adobe (formerly Macromedia) Flash.

Although there are advantages and disadvantages to each format, we highly recommend Flash due to its compatibility on different computers.

We also recommend QuickTime as it is also available for multiple platforms. It deliverers remarkable quality through its MPEG and the new H.246 codecs, although not as commonly installed as Flash.

About audio/video for the web

Download vs. Streaming
With video for the web, there are two options. Downloaded video/audio, regardless of the format, must be downloaded through the media player completely before it can be viewed. Streaming video/audio is downloaded in fragments as the user views the movie.

The advantage of downloaded video/audio is that it allows you to present the media in higher quality, but it is more suitable for short videos. The advantage of streaming is that it allows for longer videos to be viewed on the web, but quality is sacrificed in order to accommodate dial-up internet users.

Quality of the Source
The source media has a large effect on the quality of the web-optimized media. High quality source audio/video results in high quality web-optimized audio/video. For example, a Digital Video version is preferred over DVD version, and a DVD version is preferred over a VHS version.

Other Considerations
The quality of the web-optimized version will vary based on several other factors.

First, consider your target audience. If most of your users use dial-up internet connections, you will want to deliver audio/video that can played on a computer with a slow internet connection. This means that the size of the video will be smaller, the quality will be less, and the video will be played back at a slower rate. If most of your users are on high-speed internet, your video can be played at a larger size, at better quality, and at a higher rate connection. Another common option is to provide two or more versions of the audio/video to cater to both types of users.

Next, consider what hardware most of your target audience is using. For example, the average PC user will probably use Flash and Windows Media (ships will all Windows XP PCs). If most of your users are MAC users, they will probably use Flash and QuickTime (Ships with all Apple computers).

However, if you already use an audio/video technology on your website, you will want to continue to use the same technology. For example, if you have Flash elements on your website, it would be convenient to use Flash as the delivery format for your audio/video project.

Please contact us if you have other questions or if we may assist you in your audio/video needs.

Audio/Video Resources

Flash player
http://www.macromedia.com/

Quicktime
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/

RealMedia
https://www.real.com/

Windows Media
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/