云计算Vs. 预置编码困境
In terms of dividing work between cloud and on-prem, 将联合到其他有线电视频道和网络分销合作伙伴的内容被上传到云端并进行编码. 在上传之前, Vantage系统将离散的部分连接起来，并按照精确的定时规格应用徽标和其他品牌. 泽布罗斯基说, 文件被“缝合”了, 品牌, 因为它拥有最符合公司严格标准的功能集，所以被Vantage“窃听”.
Vantage在逆向影视和其他预处理功能方面也做得更好, 哪一个规定了某些合作伙伴的编码是在本地执行的. 这是除了螺母和螺栓编码的任务，如标题, and for international distribution, 内部生产, and marketing that are more efficiently encoded on-prem.
有趣的是, 泽布罗斯基说，斯克里普斯可以“在几秒钟内”将一个45分钟的夹层文件上传到云存储,” so upload time isn’t a significant barrier to using a cloud encoder. 编码后，这些文件被传输到合作伙伴或他们自己的CDN. 因为夹层文件比所有离散的可交付成果的总和要小得多, 实际上，将夹层文件上传到云端并在那里编码比在本地编码并将所有可交付成果上传到各自的目的地更有效.
展望未来，Zebroski认为对本地和云编码的需求将会持续. “每次我们认为对本地编码的需求已经稳定下来，”他说，“事情就会发生变化. 例如, 在过去, most of our encoding involved short form 3- to 5-minute segments, now full episodes are the rage, 我们的分销合作伙伴正在寻找更多的文件迭代和更高质量的输出. All this stresses and strains on our on-prem encoding; over the last 5–7 years, our hardware purchases haven’t ever plateaued, 我们不得不继续购买.”
T3 Media Meets Elastic Demand in the Cloud
The other company in this category, T3Media, 提供内容管理, 通过其T3图书馆管理平台即服务提供和货币化解决方案. Between its own library of stock footage, and content managed for clients, T3 encodes tens of thousands of files a day. According to CTO Mark Lemmons, 公司开始使用Harmonic等公司的各种内部编码器进行编码, Telestream, 和数字激流, as well as encoders built around FFMPEG.
T3 looked to the cloud to address a backlog of 600,000 “housekeeping” encodes that weren’t billable to clients. Though essential, the jobs kept getting delayed in favor of paying jobs. 最终, T3 pushed these jobs to Zencoder, which processed them in about six weeks, and was surprisingly affordable.
最初, source files longer than 3 minutes were encoded on-prem, while shorter files were encoded in the cloud. 莱蒙斯说, 该公司正在扩展他们的基础设施，以便这两种工具都可以对“工厂中的任何工作”进行编码.也就是说, certain jobs -- and certain clients -- will get pushed to the cloud, particularly when demand is elastic.
例如, 一个T3客户端处理用于广播和YouTube分发的大量UGC上传. Some days, the show gets 2,000 videos uploaded, some days 20,000. 莱蒙斯说, “Without the ability to offload encoding to the cloud, 我们必须购买只在高需求时期使用的预付费编码器. 云计算使我们能够在没有资本支出的情况下满足这种可扩展的需求，并且只支付我们绝对需要的费用.”
在选择Zencoder之前, 莱蒙扫描了它的API, which proved “well documented and accessible, and mapped well to our internal systems.莱蒙斯还将Zencoder的编码质量与其内部系统进行了比较，并找到了相同之处. 有趣的是, Lemmons also liked Zencoder’s per-second pricing, which he found easier for planning and budgeting than per GB pricing.
专属云
我们的第三类包括两家完全转向云计算的公司, 或者尽可能只提供日常操作所需的一些内部部署功能. Part of this relates to the ability to perform tasks that can’t be efficiently performed on-prem; part the desire to move to the cloud as an affordable way to address the inherent unpredictability of encoding demands.
赫斯特的电视 Adds Live Ad Insertion and Remote Production
赫斯特的电视该公司在美国各地拥有29家电视台和两家广播电台.S. markets, is a good example of the first reason. 具体地说, 迈克·罗塞里尼说, 数字运营副总裁, 赫斯特之所以选择云计算，是因为它可以实现两项在本地不容易实现的功能. The first related to advertising insertion into their live HLS streams. Before implementing the Anvato cloud solution, 赫斯特电视台分发的所有直播都在广告休息期间显示了涂黑的图像, which was not only a bad experience for viewers, but left advertising money on the table.
现在, 每个电台都有一个本地的Anvato盒子来创建HLS流，这些流被推送到赫斯特的cdn. 在云端工作, Anvato integrates with Hearst’s advertising service, 双击“发布者”, 向CDN推送广告, which are spliced seamlessly into the stream. 这样一来，赫斯特就可以从视频中赚钱，观众也可以在休息时间看点东西.
赫斯特还利用Anvato将按需剪辑制作带到云端. 在过去, 所有点播剪辑都是在每个站点使用非线性编辑器创建的, which required producers to be on site. If news was breaking at one station, 其他机构的编辑无法远程提供帮助. Rosellini installed another Anvato box at each station, which creates a low-resolution proxy clip for web editing, and a mezzanine file for rendering and production, 这导致了OVP 创作的推广和盈利.
使用Anvato系统, local producer can edit from home or on location, and editors from other stations can chip in in a pinch. 结果是, 罗塞里尼报告说，赫斯特每天发布的点播视频数量增加了一倍多, producing “more clips to monetize, and more advertising impressions.”
Univision走向云端
Anvato also provided an irresistible value proposition to Univision, the Spanish language broadcast network, which replaced their on-prem encoding gear for an Anvato system. 我采访了Univision负责数字运营的高级副总裁张麦华(Mai-Wah Cheung) & 服务.
张国荣说, the company started looking at the cloud in 2009, 主要是寻求可伸缩性，以满足他们不可预测的编码需求. Cheung first considered traditional OVPs, but found their workflows too restrictive, and their Spanish support primitive. 该公司联系了Anvato, who provided a fully functional Spanish player “over a weekend,” proving their responsiveness and technical capabilities.
今天, Univision在其视频路由器上部署了Anvato捕获设备，以捕获按需分发的节目. A high-resolution copy is stored on site, while a 15Mbps 1080p stream is uploaded to Univision’s S3 account. 从那里，它被转码到大约20个不同的配置文件，用于多屏幕部署.
在一个单独的工作流中, Univision的生产合作伙伴提供的Avid DNxHD或ProRes格式的视频也被转换为15Mbps的夹层文件, and uploaded to S3 for similar processing. Anvato本地系统还可以为第三方电缆分发创建50Mbps的MPEG-2文件.
张国荣说, Anvato performs critical encoding, 内容准备和包装功能内的Univision视频工作流程. As compared to their former on-prem systems, “Anvato’s hybrid model can extend to encode the unexpected.” Univision has moved to the cloud, and isn’t looking back.
This article was originally published in the July/August 2014 issue of 流媒体 正如“云Vs. 本地编码困境”
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