Multicast Announces Hosted Enterprise-class Transcoding with Live 24 x 365 Support

Multicast Transcoding software-as-a-service solution makes converting digital video, audio and images fast, affordable and low risk

Multicast, a market leader in live event broadcasting, Internet video and multimedia communication, today announced the general availability of Multicast Transcoding. Multicast Transcoding is a software-as-a-service solution that meets a market need for reliable, affordable, one-to-many digital video, audio and image file conversion. This announcement represents yet another step in Multicast's strategy of offering a wide range of solutions that enable organizations to communicate more effectively and efficiently.

Using digital assets in a particular way, or in more than one way, usually requires transcoding—converting the original file to one or more other formats, bit rates and/or resolutions. The market need for transcoding is growing because organizations of all types and sizes are using more digital video, audio and images to engage their target audience and communicate effectively with them. Meanwhile, the complexity of transcoding is increasing due to the proliferation of formats and display options, in part because of the rising popularity of social communities and user generated content.

Historically, organizations' transcoding options have been limited. On-premise solutions require a significant upfront investment in hardware and software, and require staff time to monitor and troubleshoot the process. Hosted alternatives have either been full-featured and expensive, or low-priced with limited capabilities.

Lou Schwartz, Multicast's CEO commented, "We are launching Multicast Transcoding as a stand-alone solution now because the market demand for transcoding is increasing rapidly, and because we can offer many companies a significantly better alternative than what's been available.

"For many years, we've done transcoding day in and day out as part of the hosted end-to-end video and audio solution we provide to our clients," he explained. "As a result, we understand both the technology and business issues. Multicast Transcoding is unique in that it is enterprise-class and affordable. And, because we know that clients want transcoding to happen quickly without requiring a lot of time and attention from their staff, our experienced service team is available live—not via-email—24 hours a day, 365 days a year."

Multicast Transcoding supports a wide range of commonly and occasionally used file formats, and a wide range of functionality, including customizable widgets to ingest practically any file type; full-featured process automation capabilities including profiles for repetitive tasks; moderation to catch unlicensed and inappropriate content; automatic creation of player-optimized thumbnail images; watermarking; metadata capture, editing and preservation; progress notification signals; file delivery options, and reporting.

"Multicast Transcoding's usage-based, pay-as-you-go, no-hidden-fees pricing model makes it attractive to many organizations as their total transcoding solution. In addition, organizations that use on-premise solutions will find Multicast Transcoding a reliable, cost-effective alternative to adding occasionally used hardware capacity and software licenses for peak periods," Schwartz said.