India’s second largest circulated newspaper rolls out video on flagship property: Jagran.com

OFFICIAL WEB WIRE: http://bit.ly/marcellus-jagran

February 02, 2010 – Marcellus Inc. announced today its first major news property sign-up, with the addition of the Jagran Group to its customer base. The announcement follows the launch of video delivery on Jagran.com, powered by the Marcellus platform. Leveraging the Amazon Cloudfront CDN, Marcellus empowers Jagran to serve high quality, buffer-free video experiences to a massive global audience- with a publishing workflow customized to match the enterprise level requirements of a large news organization.

“The history of Jagran speaks for itself,” said Preetam Mukherjee, president and chief executive officer at Marcellus. “With an offline audience of over 50 million daily readers and an online audience of over 1.5 million monthly viewers, Jagran is superbly poised to create exciting new business opportunities with online video. We are privileged to be supporting these video initiatives at an organization that has documented the daily history of the largest democracy in the world since 1942.”

In less than two weeks since the introduction of video, Jagran has served well over 300 hours of programming from its flagship portal, http://www.jagran.com. By adopting the Marcellus Video Platform, Jagran plans to leverage the tremendous scale economics of video delivery from the Amazon Cloudfront CDN, and increase the level of audience engagement across all its online media properties.

“In our search for a video platform, there were a few things we simply could not compromise upon.” said Sukirti Gupta, CEO at MMI Online, which manages Jagran.com. “The first, and foremost, was quality- there is no excuse for delivering inferior quality video experiences to audiences. Second was cost- we needed an economical solution that could help us build a viable business model around our online video initiatives. Third- we needed a platform that could easily integrate with our content management system powered by Yahoo. Finally- we wanted to work with an agile team that is extremely competent with the business and technology of online video”.

“After months of evaluating online video platforms from across the world, we settled on Marcellus as the platform of our choice. They’re an exciting bunch, extremely passionate about this space, with the ability to execute fast. Once we signed off with them, Marcellus took us from zero to launch in three weeks, which was a pleasant surprise in of itself. We are absolutely delighted with our choice and look forward to pioneering the online video revolution in India with the Marcellus team backing us up.”

With the successful launch of Jagran.com, Marcellus continues its pledge to help businesses and web sites across the world deliver high quality video to their audiences, at extremely affordable price points. The company plans to drive deeper into the North American market in 2010, and extend its footprint among small and mid-sized businesses looking to deliver online video- a market where simplicity, quality and cost continue to be an under-served combination.

EDITIONS AND PRICING

The Marcellus service is available in three Editions- BASIC, PLUS and PREMIUM. Each edition offers a set of functionality geared towards organizations with varying needs. In addition, Marcellus offers five Infrastructure plans, from 10 GB to 1.5 TB in monthly bandwidth capacity. Enterprise customers requiring larger bandwidth volumes are set up with custom infrastructure plans tailored to their needs. Using a combination of the BASIC edition and 10 GB bandwidth plan, publishers can get started with Marcellus for as low as 25 Dollars per month.

For a free, 30-day evaluation, please visit http://marcellus.tv/start and start publishing videos in less than five minutes.

ABOUT MARCELLUS

Marcellus is a video platform for small and mid-sized businesses to deliver high quality video experiences from their own web sites. The Marcellus team comprises of former researchers from the University of California at Berkeley, and has over a decade of experience with online video technology and social media.

The company was founded in August, 2007 and has offices in North America and India.

PDF: http://cdn.marcellus.tv/press/2010/january/jagran_marcellus.pdf

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

+1-877-421-0665

buzz@marcellus.tv

http://www.marcellus.tv

Happy 2010 everyone!

We launched a new design for the Marcellus Video Platform last night.
For the most part, we’ve made things a little cleaner, added more definition to containers, introduced consistency where it was lacking, and added a touch of soft aesthetics wherever possible.

You’ll see the changes as soon as you log-in to your account, but we’ve included a few screenshots below anyway.
Enjoy!

mvp- The Dashboard

mvp- Upload a new video

mvp- Customize Video player

mvp- Video Library

The (impending) arrival of Giraffic, with its Peer-2-Peer content delivery technology, raises some interesting thoughts about online video models.

Obviously, the first question to strike me was: what if YouTube was powered by a P2P delivery network? Imagine a distribution network comprising hundreds of millions of “mini”servers, serving up over a billion video views every day.

It’s a WOW factor on too many levels. I won’t even bother going into the cost-savings that would result from a scenario like this. Bandwidth costs could be halved, at least.

But even more exciting than the cost savings is how this could drive a fundamental change in new media business models. Now, you have millions of “distributors” who are not just pointing people to your content, but actually serving up the content as well. As a content owner, you benefit. As a content consumer, you benefit.

As a CDN, you’re scared stiff, and as a video platform, you’re ensuring QoS and reliability, perhaps giving the CDNs a comforting pat in the back.

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A few harsh realities that stand in the way, nonetheless.

P2P delivery happens in chunks, so for users to help deliver those chunks, data will need to be downloaded/cached on their local machines first. This is obviously antithetic to streaming video, and a big argument in favor of progressive downloading.

Along the same lines, the local P2P client would be  the Flash player. Every time a user refreshes a page/navigates away from a page, the P2P network loses a seed. This is in stark contrast to a traditional BitTorrent client, which is “always on”.

- – -

Nonetheless, P2P delivery of online video is a very interesting conversation to have.  Adobe is definitely thinking hard about it, with RTMFP (Real Time Media Flow Protocol), supported by the Flash 10 Player. Joost gave it a shot, but failed.

I think this is one disruption that will completely depend on timing, more than execution. Now’s not the time for it, but 2010…who knows?

Excellent write-up by Vivek Wadhwa @ Techcrunch, about stealth mode startups, and if it still makes sense to be doing them.
The general consensus is that aside from a few rare cases, the answer is a big N.O.

Head on over to Techcrunch and check out the article.

A couple of days ago, I posted the first part in the “20 Questions with Dr. Dre(y)” series.

Something Kris said caught my attention, and this second question is directed at that.

#2. Very interesting point, re: “Platforms are beginning to narrow their focus on core competencies”.
As we see the emergence of more end-to-end platforms, where would that leave pure-play offerings like Tube Mogul (syndication only) and Encoding.com (encoding only)?
The way I see it, both form a piece of a bigger puzzle, and if there are vendors emerging that not only solve that larger puzzle, but also focus on specific core competencies, then it’s probably not going to be very good news for the other pure-play folks.

What’s your take on this?

Kris Drey:

I see the pure plays as a very distinct piece of the OVP puzzle, some having come directly from the platform world.

Encoding.com was once an OVP until they changed their business model one year ago this month.
VideoEgg changed gears back in 2007 from being an online video platform to that of online “engagement advertising” development.

The pure-plays have a very significant role in the big picture, focusing their time on a specific function which adds value to everyone in the form of third-party relationships.

As mentioned in question 1, the partner programs include these pure plays which save the top-to-bottom platform providers time and money offering win/win relationships as add-ons for the end customer.

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Preetam:

Yes, and No.

These pure plays *could* save top > bottom providers time and money if they were able to offer easy hooks into their service that make a particular task(for example..video encoding) economical.

Most of them have an API that can facilitate the hook, but very few of them offer clear economic value in deviating from an on-premise solution.

Case in point, Marcellus uses the Amazon Cloud for video encoding, storage, and delivery. Not only does Amazon provide a seriously awesome API for us to be able to pull that off, they also offer a usage-based model starting at pennies, which makes adoption/integration a no-brainer.

On the other hand, we have a company like Encoding.com. It’s a great service that seems like a clear complement to our offering..on paper. We were even considering leveraging their API to off-load our video encoding. But the economics simply didn’t make sense to us, and we ended up building up our own encoding engine.

In theory, it’s all a nice value-chain. But in reality, there’s very little opportunity for forging fast, on-demand relationships. Which is why I feel like the pure play service providers need to start thinking about interoperability from an economic standpoint…moving beyond simply providing an API.

We’re excited and blown away: Fierce Online Video just released its Fierce15 list of companies that “provide the skeleton, muscle and flesh of the online video industry”.

Marcellus made it to this list- we’re delighted, humbled, excited and eager to continue our efforts with renewed vigor.

Check out the full list here and read the Marcellus interview here.

Big thanks to Jim O’Neill at FierceOnlineVideo for the nomination!

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be publishing a series of posts under the title: “20 Questions with Dr. Dre(y)”.

These are conversations I’ve had with Kris Drey, the founder of VidCompare.com-  an online service that helps folks find the perfect online video platform provider suited to their needs. Kris is also Vice President (Product Marketing and Management) at Fliqz, which is also an excellent online video hosting and delivery service.

Kris happens to be one of the under-mentioned stalwarts of the online video space, IMHO. His perspectives on online video are very clear, grounded in reality, and create a good balance between innovating vs. catering to demand. We are totally delighted to have Kris talk to us and share his thoughts, so after a round of profuse thanks, and without further ado:

#1: Kris, you’re the founder of a terrific site that compares video platforms, VidCompare. It’s surprising that in the 10-odd years of streaming media being around, there hasn’t been a site like VidCompare. Why do you think that is?

Kris Drey:

The key reason for the lack of an OVP comparison site until now is that online video has not been in the mainstream for long, we’re still in our infancy. But thanks to massive broadband penetration and the birth of YouTube, online video has become a world-wide phenomenon pushing viewership numbers to astronomical levels with and astounding 21.4 billion views in July ’09, in the US alone. This staggering number proves the fact that online video is no fad, much like email has become a permanent and daily part of our lives.

Consumers and enterprises alike have come to realize the power of online video in the form of entertainment, shrinking television viewing, and as a highly effective marketing tool. OV is no longer just a competitive advantage but is rapidly becoming a table stake for any online marketer.

The OVP space is looking more and more like the CDN space every day as feature sets expand and prices retract. Platforms are beginning to narrow their focus on core competencies such as video SEO, syndication, and analytics for example. The fight for differentiation is fierce as business deals are struck with third parties forming deep partnership programs offering a wide array of solutions, and internal technologies advance bringing about unique offerings such as Kaltura’s open source platform.

Now, more than ever, as marketers look for new ways to drive high quality leads, online video is proving to be at the top of the list of every strategic roadmap. This fervency has sparked a fire that has yet to be contained in the growth of the OVP space. Innovators such as The Feedroom, Brightcove, and thePlatform are joined by a wave of new players like Marcellus, Wistia, and vzaar and we’re still seeing new players come into the fray like the recently launched Quick.tv.

This is where initiatives like the OVPSummit and VidCompare come in play. The mission of VidCompare is to help first-time buyers of video, such as VPs of Marketing and CEOs, understand the options available to them, and to assist them in choosing the right platform provider for their business needs.

—

Burning question for OVPSummit/VidCompare audiences:

How do you use Vid Compare? What’s the one feature/service missing on the site currently that would simplify the evaluation process for you?
Fire away in the comments section below.

—

Every valid response will a free BASIC account at Marcellus for 30-days, in addition to the 30-day evaluation- a $25 value!
Be sure to leave your e-mail address, and rest assured that we will never ever give it out to anyone else, or use it for any purpose except for this one specific e-mail sending you instructions on redeeming this offer.

Good morning,

We just released a new layout for your video management page. You can see the re-designed look by clicking on the “Manage Videos” tab in your admin console.

For the most part, we’ve tried to focus on making the list view more read-able. We have also added in a “Preview” option under each video thumbnail, so you can preview the video without having to click through to the video customization page.

Oh- equally important..we’ve added in the ability to search through your videos as well. You will see the search bar to the right of the navigation tab, on the Manage Videos page.

Good luck, and enjoy! As always, we look forward to your feedback to make Marcellus a more usable and functional service.

Enables delivery of high quality video from self-owned web properties, to audiences of any size. Includes a free, no-obligation, 30-day trial. Paid plans start at only 25 Dollars per month.

Marcellus, LLC announces today the public release of its powerful online video platform, based on the Amazon computing cloud. In response to the explosive global demand for video on the web, Marcellus offers an end to end solution for small to mid-sized businesses to deliver video using the award-winning H.264 standard, monetize their content using ad networks or self-served advertisements, track their video viewership across the Internet, and much more- from within a simple, web-based interface.

With a unique pricing model that separates features from delivery capacity, the Marcellus platform enables publishers to get started for as little as 25 Dollars per month. Leveraging the Amazon cloud as its core infrastructure, Marcellus offers a unique combination of low cost, and virtually unlimited delivery capacity on demand.

CUSTOMER QUOTE
“Marcellus has the best combination of quality, price and features to host our paid video content. And most important to the user experience we provide, the video quality is excellent“.
DENNIS SMITH, Founder, iFocusToday.com

“In the month of September 2009, 84% of Americans on the Internet were also watching video online“, said Preetam Mukherjee, co-founder and chief executive officer at Marcellus. “That’s an all-time record in the history of online video. Publishers recognize this, are eager to capitalize on the opportunity, are sophisticated enough to understand what they need to do, but don’t have access to an economical solution which helps them deliver gorgeous viewing experiences, easily. And that’s exactly what the Marcellus platform has woven together: quality, scale, ease, economics, and simplicity.”

SPOTLIGHT ON PLATFORM FUNCTIONALITY

1. Fast video encoding into the H.264 format, with processing performed entirely on the Amazon EC2 cloud. Upload files in almost any source format, including AVI, MP4, MOV, and WMV.

2. Specify target bit-rates for encoding, with automatic optimization of video during the encoding process, for buffer-free viewing experiences.

3. Extremely light-weight, fast-loading video player, with the ability to customize colors, player size, and functionality. Add your own cover image for display before video playback, and include your own overlay branding within the player.

4. Introducing support for pre-roll and overlay advertisements- Easily plug in your Adap.TV, Google AdSense for Video, Atlas or Scanscout credentials, and start monetizing your content in minutes. Or, setup your own custom advertisement campaign, with your own rules to limit visibility, impressions, ad-expiration, and clicks.

5. Dedicated encoding in the cloud for customers using the Premium edition. With a maximum pre-processing time of 5 minutes, this edition is designed for customers who need their content encoded right away, skipping ahead of all customers in queue.

6. Real-time reports on video traffic, impressions and embed locations. Keep track of exactly where your videos are viewed, and how often. Daily updates on bandwidth consumption at a granular level for each video, and at an aggregate level for all your content.

BRINGING THE ECONOMICS OF THE AMAZON CLOUD TO BUSINESSES

“Amazon was a clear choice for us when building up our infrastructure“, said Sunil Chiluvuri, chief technology officer at Marcellus. “Whether you’re a service provider or a content publisher working with online video, you always have two core concerns: scale and cost. Not only do you worry about being able to handle gigantic spikes in video traffic, you also have to ensure that your cost of delivery isn’t overshadowing your earning potential.
Being able to build up a virtualized infrastructure on the Amazon Web Services was crucial to us being able to address both scenarios. The availability of on-demand computing power, coupled with the elastic nature of the S3 cloud, is helping us offer a viable video service at price points that were previously unheard of in this space.”

Marcellus is an official Amazon Web Services Solution Partner, and leverages leading-edge AWS cloud services like EC2, S3, SQS and Cloudfront to deliver a compelling and reliable service to its customers.

EDITIONS AND PRICING

The Marcellus service is available in three Editions- BASIC, PLUS and PREMIUM. Each edition offers a set of functionality geared towards organizations with varying needs. In addition, Marcellus offers five Infrastructure plans, from 10 GB to 1.5 TB in monthly bandwidth capacity. Using a combination of the BASIC edition and 10 GB capacity, publishers can get started with Marcellus for as low as 25 Dollars per month.
For a free, 30-day evaluation, please visit http://marcellus.tv/start and start publishing videos in less than five minutes.

ABOUT MARCELLUS

Marcellus is a video platform for small and mid-sized businesses to deliver high quality video experiences from their own web sites. The Marcellus team comprises of former researchers from the University of California at Berkeley, and has over a decade of experience with online video technology and social media.
The company was founded in August, 2007 and has offices in North America and India.

PRESS CONTACT

Riff Khan
+1-510-868-5279

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We’re adding in support for standard player modes, for folks that feel the need for a view different from the light mode that we currently offer.

The change is simple: on the video customization page, you’ll be able to select “Standard” or “Light” as a pull down menu option for your player.

What does the “Standard” mode look like? Check it out- nice ‘n big.

Watch out for this release next week!