What does SeeItFirst provide?
SeeItFirst - patented technology from UBICS, Inc. - enables the creation of interactive
streaming media solutions and services. The technology allows any web and video
novice to author enriched streaming video by synchronizing web elements with either
live or archived video via their web-browser. Creating synchronized streaming video
with the help of SeeItFirst requires minimal effort, almost no learning curve and
minimal expertise.
The SeeItFirst technology applications consist of:
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SeeItFirst Now™ - Enables the creation of dynamic interactive streaming live or
on-demand video with synchronized multimedia content
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SeeItFirst Broadcast™ - Enables the delivery of synchronized online, dynamic interactive
video and multimedia webcasts
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SeeItFirst Mobility™ - Provides wireless low bandwidth video and high resolution
stop photos
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SeeItFirst StreamCD™ - Enables the capture of interactive streaming video session
on CD
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What is streaming video?
Streaming video is essentially video or multiple still images and sound that have been "digitized and compressed" (called encoding) in standardized formats. The streaming video sent in a compressed form over the Internet, displays as soon as it arrives. With streaming media, viewers do not have to wait long periods to download large files. Instead, media sent in a continuous stream plays as it arrives. Streaming videos use web browser plug-ins, which decompress and play the enriched file in real time. Media players such as real player, quicktime and windows media player (the three most dominant players on the web) are used to view streamed video on the desktop. Media servers are used to store and distribute the content. Users can now view and listen to streaming video while a media player simultaneously requests packets of information from the host media server and caches these packets of information in the media player's memory buffer. Depending on the encoding algorithm, or codecs which relate to a particular media player (such as real player, quicktime or windows media player) and the connection speed, the user is able to see a fluid stream at high frame rates of content with the best possible viewing resolution.
What is interactive streaming video?
Enriched streaming video is streaming video enhanced by delivering other multimedia, such as web links, web applications, flash, text, and graphics in context to what the viewer is watching. This provides a captivating viewer experience and opens the potential for highly targeted transactions.
Do viewers need a plug-in or download or a special media player to
view the interactivity?
Many vendors offering interactive streaming video solutions do require special plug-ins, file downloads or proprietary media players. SeeItFirst works with popular media players (real networks, microsoft, apple and emblaze) SeeItFirst dynamically serves HTML frames that surround the media player's output within a web page.
What do I need to use your products?
Our products work as online applications. Therefore, content owners need only a web-browser (microsoft or netscape) to access the authoring environment. Since it is an online application, our products support anytime, anywhere authoring, collaboration, updating and modification for enterprises and media companies.
do not have encoded video? Where do I start?
SeeItFirst can take your finished video, on tape or as data via FTP transfer, and
encode the video for popular media players and bit-rate connections. We also offer
optional hosting and distribution services.
I already have an encoded video and a streaming media service provider?
SeeItFirst's interactive platform can work with already encoded video as well as
already deployed video. Regardless who encoded the video and where the video resides
and is served, content owners can readily add interactivity using SeeItFirst Now.
I am doing a webcast. what can SeeItFirst provide?
SeeItFirst has alliances with leading event and video production companies to film,
transfer, encode, distribute and enrich your webcast to your desired audience. If
you already have such service providers, SeeItFirst Broadcast can be used as a hosted
application to enhance the live, webcast experience. Our solutions can and have
been integrated with existing streaming media systems and services. In addition,
SeeItFirst Broadcast supports syndication, in which multiple website with rights
to the same live streaming video feed can author some or all interactive elements
to create a tailored event for their target viewers.
How can one add interactivity to a live webcast?
SeeItFirst Broadcast is a web-based dynamic webcast production facility that enables content owners to enrich webcast events by dynamically pushing interactive content in context to the live video stream. Webcast producers design HTML frame-layouts for webcasts, in which live stream is surrounded by related content. Webcast producers then pre-define any web content to be pushed individually into designated frames. These elements can be combined as a group to be pushed at once. During the live event, the webcast producers dynamically push individual or grouped elements that relate to what the viewers are watching. The result is a captivating webcast with greater transaction possibilities.
What interactivity can be added to a streaming video?
SeeItFirst Now and SeeItFirst Broadcast enable content owners to serve almost any content to be synchronized to live or archived streaming video. The content must be web-accessible for the end user. Content includes web graphics, flash, text, presentation slides, banner advertisements and links. It also includes online applications such as chat, e-commerce, polling, games and voice (VoIP). In addition, users can capture and interact with quality still images while watching a video, regardless of connection speeds. The still images are typically presented in a higher resolution than the streaming content. Content owners can control whether users can print, enlarge, and save images. The ability to view videos at a high-resolution at lowest connection speeds significantly improves viewer satisfaction by overcoming the problem of poor quality web-based video transmission. This has immediate application for e-learning, product demonstrations and repairs, as well as real estate, entertainment and leisure.
How will users access the resulting interactive streaming video?
Once a content owner has finished authoring the interactive elements associated with a streaming video, the content owner is provided with a web-link (URL), which references the finished streaming application. This URL must be embedded in a web page. When a user accesses this link, SeeItFirst pushes the interactivity to the user and the interactive elements are synchronized to the transition marks inputted by the content owner
How can I view a streaming video session when I have no web access?
SeeItFirst StreamCD™ is a complement to SeeItFirst Now™ that makes it possible for content owners to create an interactive streaming media session on a CDROM. Once an interactive video-on-demand project has been published within SeeItFirst Now™, this utility enables the content owner to select a project to be ported for playing on a CDROM. The system compiles the data and provides the resulting file for the content owner to burn CDs. This allows viewers, without an internet connection, to experience the same interactive streaming session, using popular media players, as if they were connected to the web.
Are you using SMIL or skins for interactivity?
When viewing our demonstrations, some people believe you can get similar results using SMIL or by using media player skins. SMIL stands for synchronized multimedia integration language. It is a scripting language to present interactive multimedia content delivered in real-time over the web. SMIL is a powerful and useful layout language. Our platform is not based on SMIL and abstracts typical technical challenges and learning curves associated with SMIL. with our platform, web and video novices can readily use our online applications to create enriched video on demand or webcast experiences. Skins are the means for content owners to modify and control the presentation of the media player itself. SeeItFirst does not use skins, which require a user-download. Instead, SeeItFirst enables web and video novices to readily embed a player window and interactive content inside a web page within pre-defined frames.
What is a codec / streaming video format and bit-rate?
Streaming video requires that a video file be encoded (formatted) to be received and played by a media player. The format is the codec, which is an algorithm for compression and decompression of the video file. Popular media formats include real networks media, microsoft media and apple quick time. The two selections content owners must make about encoding are: 1) which codecs to support and 2) what bit-rates to support. bit-rates are the connection speeds at which users can watch your streaming video. Some users will only have dial-up access (e.g. bit-rates of 28 or 56), while others will have more broadband access (e.g. bit-rates of 100, 300 or greater). The encoded video file is encoded for a specific codec and bit-rate.
What is video-on-demand?
Video-on-demand is one segment of streaming media that has great potential value
for B2C, B2B and education/training applications. Video-on-demand are stored video
clips produced, encoded and archived in advance. Once stored, the encoding vendor
provides the content owner HTML (hypertext mark-up language) code to link a request
for a video to where it is stored on a media server. When a viewer requests a clip
by clicking on a web link (hence the term "video-on-demand"), portions of the media
are streamed online to the user's desktop and viewed through the designated media
player.
What are the typical limitations of streaming video?
Typically, web viewers are not offered significant interactivity while watching streaming video content. Viewers often are not provided the ability to readily request additional information or conduct transactions tied to the streaming content. Nor are viewers always able to obtain detailed views of images derived from the streaming video. Content owners seek the means to better engage, entertain, captivate and motivate the end user using streaming video. In order to achieve this enriched viewing experience, content owners often rely upon expensive video production tools, sophisticated web editing tools and related expertise. This requires either significant in-house resources or the use of usually expensive professional services. Once a project is underway or deployed, modification and updating the integrated content can also be untimely and costly.
What is a webcast?
Webcasting is similar to live television programming in that web users can watch a live event over the internet. Webcasts are the result of a live broadcast production where the video feed is captured, encoded on the fly at an encoding station, and served through a content distribution network to web viewers using pre-defined media player(s). The live feed from a webcast becomes readily available to web users for "close to real-time" viewing. The live webcast may also be archived for a determinable period, which allows it to become video-on-demand.
What are the typical limitations of webcasts?
Typically, viewers of webcasts are offered minimal means to interact with a live streaming video. Often static, barely populated web pages do not maximize the event's potential and do little to further engage the viewer. Any given webcast venue, be it entertainment or corporate communications, needs to take advantage of the wealth of other related content and applications which can better captivate, entertain, and motivate webcast participants. webcast producers desire to offset their costs and increase venue success by complementing the live video feed with additional web content and interactive applications. Typically, producers need to coordinate many event tasks and have limited time, resources and tools to enhance their webcast. Alternatively, they supplement the project by outsourcing the webcast to usually expensive, one-off professional service companies. Using SeeItFirst, any webcast producer can maximize viewer satisfaction and event success in-house, by effectively delivering dynamic content and interactive applications directly synchronized and "in context" to live streaming video.
What comprises the streaming video process?
A complete video streaming project comprises of four steps: encoding, hosting, serving
and interactivity. Any video streaming application starts with existing analog/digital
video or the creation of video content via video production. The footage may be
a finished clip often derived by employing some post-production tools for editing.
The footage can also be captured video content from a live feed.
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Encoding: The video streaming process begins with taking the finished video clip (or live feed) and encoding it for a specific media format (codec) such as real player or windows media player. Encoding is the digitization process using codecs to apply a proprietary compression algorithm that directly affects the video playback frame rate, size and quality. Items to consider prior to encoding include the anticipated number of clips that will be encoded, the anticipated total length of the video clips (in minutes), what player(s) need to be supported (e.g. real, microsoft, quicktime) and what anticipated viewer connection rates need to be supported (e.g. 28, 56, 100 or 100+ Kbps speed).
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Hosting: The next step is media hosting or storage. On converting a video
for streaming for a specific media player, it must be stored on a corresponding
media server. Some companies may choose to own a media server and employ the server
on their own premises. Other options include placing the company's media server
on a third party's Internet backbone facilities (called co-location), or subscribing
to a hosting provider's media servers and media server access facility as needed.
Items to consider prior to hosting include: how many clips will be encoded (so as
to determine the total storage space needed); total size of all the videos to be
stored; amount of time the media files will be stored (measured in months); and
what access requirements and support services may be needed (e.g. redundancy).
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Distribution: The next component termed content distribution or serving involves
delivery of the streaming media from a hosting media server to an end user's media
player. Once a media file is stored, the content owner can make the content accessible
or place a hyperlink (HTML code) on a designated website. The Website visitor obtains
the streaming video by activating the hyperlink, which in turn instructs the hosting
media server to transmit the streaming data to the end user. Items to consider prior
to serving include: the average size of the videos to be served; how many viewers
may request the video clips in a given month; how popular the clip may be in terms
of the number of users requesting the clip simultaneously; and the bit-rate at which
the content will be streamed. In addition, the efficiency of the distribution network
desired to deliver the content, as well as dynamic bandwidth allocation and server
redundancy may also be considered.
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Interactivity: The last component of a streaming video project may be the
most important since it directly contributes to the user's viewing experience, as
well as contributes to extending brand reach and increasing transaction opportunities.
Streaming media firms offer varying degrees of interactivity options. Some vendors
allow the content owners to create, control, modify, and update the interactive
content. Other vendors provide interactivity as part of their professional services.
In these cases, the vendor, not the content owner, has control over interactive
content (often employed as unique projects).
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