How secure video hosting works

Videos serve companies as valuable tools in many areas, such as live streaming or advertising videos.

Many companies cannot fulfill all of these requirements in sufficient quality alongside their day-to-day business. Video hosting platforms provide a remedy by taking on precisely these tasks.

Definition: What is video hosting?

Video hosting is an external service that companies can use to publish their videos. Video platforms store the content on their own servers. Each uploaded video receives an embed code. Companies then use this code to integrate the content on their own website.

Video hosting solutions offer companies a number of advantages:

- Relief for internal servers

- No impact on the loading time of your company's website

- Easy handling of videos

- Customer support for technical problems

- wider reach of video content (e.g. video on demand)

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Free Web Hosting or Paid Hosting?

The hosting of video hosting providers can be free of charge or for a fee. Both options offer advantages and disadvantages. These depend on the type of video, the target group and the intended goal.

A marketing and an onboarding video, for example, do not have the same intentions. They are therefore not necessarily suitable for the same hosting format. Hosting depends on the marketer's general and video content marketing strategy.

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Free video hosting

If you don't have a lot of money, free offers for small businesses can be helpful.

But there are also disadvantages. Videos often do not look professional if they do not contain logos or are placed with advertising. There are often restrictions on marketing and technical support. Restrictions on earning money with the videos and few tools for creating and distributing the videos.

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Hosting for a fee

Paid hosting providers offer exclusive presentation and better transfer rates without advertising. Depending on the package, there are additional links such as

• Upload via app or API,
• Tools for video analytics and
• improved safety functions.

Companies should compare providers to find the most suitable one. Some offer links for systems such as Salesforce and functions for virtual events.

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Challenges and benefits of secure video hosting

Secure video hosting brings with it some challenges, but also advantages.

The following four areas should be considered when choosing the right hosting provider:

1. content delivery network (eCDN)

An eCDN service ensures good video quality by forwarding data copies to geographically closer servers. As a result, videos load faster and without interruptions, especially for live streams and high-resolution content. Browser-based platforms enable video access regardless of the device.

2. API Access

Companies can use interfaces to integrate content or services from third-party providers. Not every video host service offers such an API. Others only provide API access for certain third-party providers. Companies should carefully consider whether their requirements are met.

3. earn money with videos

There are three forms of revenue that can be generated via the videos:

- Advertising

- Pay-per-view

- Subscription

4. safety

Event security is one of the main aspects when choosing a host for videos.

Theft

Sensitive video content must be protected against theft. This includes, for example, protecting videos with secure passwords, whitelisting and domain, IP and geographical restrictions. In addition, the server logs can be regularly checked for unauthorized access to the videos.

DDoS attacks

A secure hosting platform can use various methods to fend off DDoS attacks:

• Traffic filtering to identify and block malicious traffic
• Load balancing to avoid server overloads
• Use of anti-DDoS services with advanced techniques such as behavioral analysis and AI

Privacy

On the customer side, data protection must be guaranteed when watching the videos. In Germany and the EU, the regulations of the respective DSGVO and GDPR apply. It is often advisable to choose a provider from the respective countries, as they comply with the regulations.

Video platforms with secure video hosting:

• Brightcove: (Boston - USA)

Tailored to businesses and offers advanced features such as monetization and analytics. The platform also offers the possibility to integrate APIs, automated workflows and promotes the improvement of work processes. However, the US-based company is increasing the cost of the advanced features.

• Kaltura: (New York City - USA)

Scalable and flexible. The platform is suitable for live streaming, interactive video creation and linking to the API. It offers a variety of tools for editing videos and embedding VR/AR technologies. Kaltura is also based in the US and may not be as user-friendly for beginners.

• MovingIMAGE24: (Berlin - DE)

The platform offers advanced features such as branding, API integration and analytics tools. The costs may be higher compared to other video hosting providers. In addition, MovingIMAGE24 may not be as intuitive for beginners as comparable platforms.

• Vidyard: (Kitchener - CA)

The platform combines video hosting, creation and analysis. It makes it possible to create videos for individual customers and leads. One disadvantage may be the high costs compared to other providers. The user interface may also not be as intuitive as other platforms.

Conclusion

Be clear about your requirements. The content and target audience of each video should determine which type of video hosting is more suitable. Content that can be hosted includes webcasts and livestreams that are made available as on-demand video.

Internal or otherwise sensitive content benefits from the higher security standards of paid hosting. Companies are also better off making videos that are exclusively available to paying customers accessible via this form of hosting.

A free video on demand provider should be used for more reach. In many cases, companies provide different content for different target groups. It is worth combining two providers in order to benefit from the advantages of free hosting and paid hosting at the same time.

Paid hosting providers should fulfill some basic requirements. These include a browser-based platform that uses a CDN for better playback. In addition, the possibility of integrating third-party apps, the integration of paywalls and GDPR compliance.

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