Flash and DivX video questions
 

Does anyone use one of these video formats for a membership or PPV site, rather than .wmv? I know that there are a few sites like vitalstream.com that offer Flash hosting for pay sites, and sites like vod.com that offer PPV movies in the DivX format, for example. Does anyone use one of these formats for your site, and if so, what has your experience with it been like? Can Mac users watch secured video in these formats, unlike with DRM protected .wmv videos?

Did not heared about digital rights managements (DRM) in DIVX and Flash (Sorenson Video) video formats

Hi,
I'm using Divx files in my membership area. I just find the quality to be superior to wmv. A bit of a hit on file size of course, but it seems worth it to me. So far, only one user who had problems because he didn't have the Divx codec installed. That was a quick fix.

As for Flash video, just bear in mind that users will need to have the Flash 8 player installed.

Also, as far as drm goes, there's no way to protect Divx avi files as far as I know. Flash video would give you a few options though. There's quite a bit of Actionscript out there that can restrict how and where your Flash gets played. Not nearly as simple as Windows Media drm however and certainly not 100% secure.

Another plus for Flash video is that it'll play just fine on Macs. Divx files are another matter. Have a look here for a thorough explanation:

www . thexlab . com/faqs/avidivx.html[/url] (sorry...can't post urls yet)

Cheers!
Chris

I know that DivX has their own form of DRM protection; vod.com, hotmovies.com, etc., sells DRM protected DivX movies. But DivX - according to one of their reps - wants 20k upfront to license their service and they charge for encoding videos and take 33% of the sales. That probably explains why there are no hosting companies I can find that support this format.

As for Flash, there are sites that claim to be able to deliver a video on demand system using that format, but the ones I have found rely on referrers for protection, so it seems easy to get around this form of authentication. I have not seen any other way of doing it and wonder if anyone else does.

Hi again,
First, let me correct myself, the end user really only needs Flash 7 player to view. Just depends on how you create your content.

You've probably already seen this, but just in case. Sounds pretty secure but this is a bit out of my area of expertise. No doubt expensive as hell and they won't handle porn :disgust , but for what it's worth:

www . adobe.com/newsletters/edge/may2005/index.html?sectionIndex=4

Good luck!
Chris