Encoding

FinanceVision launched exclusively with Windows Media, but it recently released single-rate 56Kbps and 220Kbps support for Real, currently in beta. All encoding is done on-site at the Santa Clara facility, where the encoded signal is sent over dedicated bandwidth to Yahoo! Broadcast's infrastructure in Dallas, Texas for distribution.

Scholl's team initially tested a 56Kbps to 300Kbps multi-data-rate Windows Media encode for the live webcast, but streaming quality to the end-user didn't meet Yahoo!'s expectations. "Audio is always the lowest common denominator, and you would get a really nice video stream with audio that wasn't as good," says Scholl. After further rounds of testing, it was decided to segregate the 56Kbps encode onto one box and maintain the 100Kbps to 300Kbps multi-data-rate encode on a second box during the 40 hours per week of live programming.

For video on demand segments, Yahoo! performs a 56Kbps to 100Kbps multi-data-rate encode of the day's programming. The rationale, according to Orlin, is that "people are watching the live show in the office and will be more likely to watch the archives at home."

Synchronization of video and data is one of the more clever and forward-thinking components of the encoding process for the FinanceVision archives. As the Data Wrangler pushes content into the data window during the live production, proprietary software embeds this information into the stream — dynamically creating a synchronized presentation for on-demand playback.

Vision Quest

When all the pieces fit together, you're left with a glimpse at a new era in broadcasting. "We think that, with FinanceVision, we're developing and trying to come up with standards for how people view video on the Web, and that's very different from just doing more of television," notes Orlin.

The FinanceVision team will acquire some extra breathing room when it moves to a new facility later this year. Look for more Vision channels coming soon.

References

FinanceVision: www. www.financevision.yahoo.com

GlobeCaster: www. psmg.net

vi[z]rt: www.vizrt.com

Ultimatte Corporation: www.ultimatte.com

Vyvx: www.williamscommunications.com

Avid: www.avid.com

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