Telestream Speeds Video Encoding

Telestream announced that DnA Creative Services, a leading video production company in Louisiana has selected Episode® Encoder for Windows to address the company’s advanced encoding and content repurposing needs. DnA uses Episode Encoder for various applications such as convert video to MPEG for DVD, using QuickTime and Windows Media for emailing and uploading projects to clients, and Flash for embedding videos on client web sites. Episode Encoder makes it easy to import virtually any file format and encode media to Web, DVD, or mobile including portable device formats.

As a full-service media company that provides location filming, audio recording, and complete postproduction services, DnA needed a practical means of delivering TV commercials digitally to area television stations. Over the years, DnA has used several software encoders, including Sorenson Squeeze, but turned to Telestream’s Episode Encoder for Windows due to its flexibility to quickly encode a multitude of formats including high-quality broadcast formats.

One of DnA’s ongoing projects is a semi-annual modeling and talent competition. During the weeklong event, DnA does on-location editing and uses the Episode iPhone setting to quickly encode videos before showing them to event producers on the iPhone handset. With this flexibility, the producer can instantly provide approvals and comments before broadcasting on the large projection screen over the main stage, thus mitigating any additional costs for re-shoots. In addition to flexibility, DnA chose the Episode Encoder because it has the fastest encoding speeds available in a desktop video encoder, and its fine-tuning compression capabilities generate the highest-quality media files.

“Episode Encoder's impact is much greater than the dollar value we charge for encoding video. With Episode, we are totally comfortable that the encoded video will be the highest quality and the process will be very quick and simple as opposed to the worry and work-around we would have had to go through with other encoding solutions,” said David Cardwell, Owner of DnA Creative Services.

DnA also credits using Episode to encode DVD-compliant video files, which cuts the company’s time to produce a master DVD in half. Even more significant, videos on the resulting DVDs look noticeably better and in the long run the company expects to see this directly impact its bottom line.

“The Episode line continues to deliver an unprecedented customer encoding experience, and we are delighted to have customer success stories of this nature,” said Barbara DeHart, VP of Marketing at Telestream. “The innovative work DnA Creative Services is doing as the result of Episode truly changes the way the company does business. The quick encoding speeds actually allow companies such as DnA to focus on its core competencies and in this instance, I would say, the product has not only out-performed the competition, but helps deliver peace of mind.”

Telestream and Flowerfire Sponsor Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional Training in Six U.S. Cities

Orlando, Florida - October 21, 2009 - Freeman Compression Inc. today announced that it will be providing Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional Training in six U.S. cities from December 2009 through May 2010. The Episode Encoder and Wirecast portion of the training is sponsored by Telestream and the Sawmill Professional portion is sponsored by Flowerfire. The full day training sessions will take place in New York, Chicago, Cincinnati, Las Vegas, Atlanta and Orlando. Free instruction will be provided on video compression using Telestream Episode Encoder Pro, live streaming media production using Telestream Wirecast and log files analytics for streaming servers and other devices using Flowerfire Sawmill Professional.

The training sessions will be led by Derrick Freeman, Instructor and Video Streaming Consultant for Freeman Compression, Inc. Freeman provides instruction for Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional classes at Freeman Compression Inc.

"Training is geared at familiarizing class attendees with the use of Episode Encoder, Wirecast and Sawmill Professional, along with helping them realize the powerful features found in each of these tools,” said Derrick Freeman, Instructor. “These classes will be exciting because we'll get the chance to show students encoding techniques, how to set-up live streaming, and many of the endless possibilities when users analyze their log files."

The cost of the training is free. Registration is free as well. A schedule of dates, times and locations is available at www.freemancompression.com/html/trainingevents.html. Those who would like to register or receive more information can contact Freeman Compression Inc. at 407.477.5837 or send an email to info@freemancompression.com.

About Flowerfire, Inc.
Flowerfire, Inc., founded in 1996 and based in Santa Cruz, California, is a software company which provides log analysis and reporting solutions. Flowerfire's primary product is Sawmill, a universal log analysis tool which can analyze and generate reports from over 800 log formats, including log files from all popular web servers, media servers, security applications, mail servers, spam filters, firewalls, proxies, gateways, and FTP servers. In addition to Sawmill, Flowerfire also provides consulting services for log analysis and reporting solutions. Flowerfire is privately held, family-friendly, and employee owned and controlled. (www.sawmill.net)

About Telestream
Telestream products make it possible to get video content to any audience regardless of how it is created, distributed or viewed. Throughout the entire digital media lifecycle, from capture to viewing, for consumers through high-end professionals, Telestream products include components, cross-platform encoding and live video streaming applications, plus fully-automated workflow systems. Telestream enables users in a broad range of business environments to leverage the value of their video content. Telestream corporate headquarters are located in Nevada City, California, and its team of video experts is located in France, Germany, Sweden, UK and US. (www.telestream.net)

About Freeman Compression Inc.
Located in Orlando, Florida Freeman Compression Inc. provides consulting for video streaming and compression. The company also offers video streaming training and compression training. The classes provided are: 1-Day Wowza Media Server Pro, 1-Day Episode Pro, 1-Day Wirecast, 1-Day Sawmill Professional and 2-Day Video Streaming and Compression. (www.freemancompression.com)

Installing Episode Plug-in for Compressor 3

If you have a license of Telestream's Episode Encoder and you are using Compressor 3 you can have access to the Episode Encoder encoding templates right from within Compressor. Here's how to install the Episode Encoder Plug-in for Compressor to get access to the templates.



On the install disk image for Episode there's a folder called Plug-ins.



Inside the folder there's a package called Episode Plug-in for Compressor. Double click on the package to install it. Restart your computer and the Episode presets will be an option in Compressor 3 encoder.

Telestream's Drive-in is Currently Unavailable

Telestream has decided to suspend further distribution of the Drive-in software pending its evaluation of the recent decision of the U.S. District Court in Real Networks, Inc. v. DVD Copy Control Association, Inc. They are taking this step as a precautionary measure, and will continue to monitor the situation. They will keep the public posted on any further developments.

Testing Encoding Speed vs. Quality Setting in Episode

As if Telestream's Episode wasn't already fast enough, there's a way to make you encoding jobs go even faster. Here's some information from a quick test I did on Encoding Speed vs. Quality Setting in Episode.

Here's the source file that I used for encoding:

Video Format: QuickTime

Frame Size: 640 x 480

Codec: DV

FPS: 30

Audio: 44.100 kHz

16 bit Stereo

Duration: 30 seconds

I used the default H.264_Medium compression setting in Episode Pro which uses a 2-pass VBR compression method. For the first encode with the Encoding Speed vs. Quality setting set to 90 my video took 40 seconds to encode. On my second encode I adjusted the same compression setting and switched the Encoding Speed vs. Quality setting to 10. The video took 27 seconds to compress. Now when comparing the quality of both of my output files the video encoded using a quality setting of 10 still looked really good in terms of quality. Most would never notice the difference in quality. This is good news for those that need to compress files fast with Episode but don't won't to loose quality.

Telestream Recognized as a Top 10 "Innovation All-Star" as Part of the 2nd Annual New California 100 Conference

Telestream has been recognized as one of ten 2009 California Innovation All-Stars and was honored at the 2nd annual New California 100 conference on September 22 in Sacramento. The New California 100 conference is a joint effort of Golden Capital Network and Hamilton Lane. The All-Star Awards are officially endorsed by the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency. The Innovation All-Stars are receiving special honors as a special subset of the New California 100 companies as they exemplify some of the most innovative companies in the state, representing California's commitment to innovation, entrepreneurship, and workforce competitiveness.

"California is a leading region in the world for technological innovation, so to be considered among the top ten companies this year is very meaningful to us," said Dan Castles, CEO of Telestream. "Receiving this award validates our continuous focus on innovation and fuels our motivation to keep pursuing this approach."

The companies were selected from over 400 nominations from throughout the State of California to receive this prestigious recognition. The All-Star selection committee was comprised of angel investors, venture capitalists, successful entrepreneurs, and conference sponsors. The selected ten businesses were recognized during a luncheon awards ceremony on September 22, 2009 at the New California 100 Conference in Sacramento's Sheraton Grand Hotel.

"These innovators are powerful job-creating machines," said Jon Gregory, CEO/President of Golden Capital Network. "We believe innovation and entrepreneurship are the drivers of economic growth in California and these Innovation All-Stars are models for our state."

In addition to the ten Innovation All-Stars, 100 companies in total were recognized as part of the 2009 group of New California 100 companies. These businesses are market-leading technology companies who have been selected based on the uniqueness of their innovation, competitive advantages, and job and economic impact on California's economy now and into the future.

Studio Hamburg MCI Selects Telestream for Tapeless Workflows

Telestream announced that Studio Hamburg Media Consult International (MCI) selected its Pipeline and Episode products for a major tapeless IT workflow project that was recently completed for Studio Berlin Adlershof (SBA), the new technical operator of TV.Berlin and Hamburg 1 in Germany. Telestream’s Pipeline Quad network video capture system and Episode Engine Pro transcoding server software provide the speed, quality and automation needed for time-critical news workflows at these facilities.

Telestream products play an important role in tapeless workflows,” said Martin Brosthaus, Product Manager at Studio Hamburg MCI. “Pipeline Quad allows edit while ingest which speeds the video capture process. Episode Engine Pro provides broad support for all required formats and delivery of high-quality output at incredible speeds.”

Installation was completed at new premises for TV.Berlin which began operation in May 2009. Hamburg 1 underwent a complete facility redesign which went live in July. The tapeless IT workflows at both facilities are virtually identical, incorporating an Apple XSAN production environment and a high degree of automation.

“Studio Hamburg is one of the largest TV and film production facilities in Europe. We are pleased that Episode and Pipeline were chosen to play such a key role in this state-of-the art tapeless workflow,” said Barbara DeHart, VP of Marketing at Telestream. “These products are ideally suited to provide the speed, quality and level of automation required for this project.”

The central component for ingest is Telestream’s Pipeline Quad four-channel network video capture system which is automatically controlled by various ingest workstations via standard LAN technology. Pipeline control software provides scheduled recording or crash recording of live sources as well as log and capture from tape sources. A key Pipeline advantage is that all four channels can be accessed from any computer on the network. The ability to record open QuickTime files is an important feature, allowing edit while ingest for time-critical workflows.

Episode Engine transcoding also plays an important role in these tapeless workflows for editing in different formats and providing the required DV format for the playout servers. Raw material and reports are transcoded on a largely automated basis with the help of Episode presets and watch folders. A low resolution browse copy is created in parallel for the editorial system. Episode provides a variety of input interfaces such as file monitors, FTP monitors and watch folders which allow easy integration in mixed Windows and Apple network environments.

According to Brosthaus, “Episode Engine and powerful Apple hardware provide a cost-effective and easy-to-operate solution for professional transcoding workflows in time-critical news environments like TV.Berlin and Hamburg 1.”

Max Below, Head of Studio Hamburg MCI Product, adds “Modern components which can save
resources, such as the network-based Pipeline and Episode Engine, make completely new methods of automation possible.”

Pipeline and Episode Engine are being demonstrated at the International Broadcasters Convention (IBC) in Amsterdam September 11-15, 2009 in Telestream Stand 7.C19.

Desktop Presenter Helps Provide Live Streaming with PowerPoint

Many might not know it but Telestream's Desktop Presenter helps provide Live Streaming video with PowerPoint. The tool works with the popular Wirecast Live Encoding tool from Telestream. Wirecast is available for both PC and Mac users. With Desktop Presenter you can display screen activity, powerpoints and .PDFs from your desktop So, if you need to show a PowerPoint Presentation during your live streaming event, install Desktop Presenter on the workstation that you will be presenting from. If the workstation is on the same network as your Wirecast Live Encoder you can pull the Desktop Presenter application up from the computer it's running on. It will have an IP Address assigned to the Desktop Presenter. Once you see the Desktop Presenter application running inside you Wirecast Live Encoder, you can put the source in preview and call it up as a source. You can then switch back and forth from your Powerpoint to the Presenter giving the presentation.

Telestream Unveils ScreenFlow V2.0

Telestream announced version 2.0 of its award-winning ScreenFlow screen recording software for the Mac. Customers will now have the ability to easily upload and directly publish screencasts to YouTube. ScreenFlow Version 2.0 also adds advanced editing capabilities and elegant transitions across clips. In addition, V2.0 customers will receive free Flip4Mac WMV Studio, providing Windows Media export directly from within ScreenFlow. Named “Best Screencasting Application” at Macworld 2009, ScreenFlow is a cost-effective software toolkit that makes it easy for software developers, trainers, educators, and bloggers to capture, edit and deliver professional-quality screen recordings and video tutorials for the Web. ScreenFlow enables users to easily create training and promotional videos that enhance learning experiences, presentations and product demonstrations.

“ScreenFlow has been the recipient of four prestigious innovation awards to date. There’s no doubt that we changed the game in video screen capture when we released this product over a year ago,” said Barbara DeHart, VP of Marketing at Telestream. “We are committed to continuing the innovation that products such as ScreenFlow and Flip4Mac bring to millions of Mac enthusiasts worldwide. We think they will be as excited as we are with the YouTube and advanced editing capabilities, plus even more format support.”

Using a unique screen capture system, ScreenFlow records the contents of a user’s desktop while simultaneously capturing video and audio in real time. Powerful features allow users to highlight areas of the screen, add effects, show keystrokes and combine existing media into their screencasts. An easy-to-use timeline interface provides powerful post-production editing capabilities, allowing users to easily enhance their video productions.

Version 2.0 adds advanced editing capabilities that allow users to adjust the speed of clips during the recording and editing process. A full range of elegant new 2D and 3D transitions include page-curl, ripple, flash, swipe, cross-dissolve, dip to black or white, and more. Usability enhancements make it easier to access, move and manage stored project files in document packages, giving users more control over their media pieces. Productivity enhancements such as new keyboard shortcuts for resizing the timeline make editing even faster. In addition to all the new features, ScreenFlow V2.0 customers will receive Flip4Mac WMV Studio (value $49) through the end of 2009 to enable export of Windows Media content directly from within the ScreenFlow application.

The recipient of two Apple Design Awards in 2008, ScreenFlow continues to take advantage of the latest Apple technology, including Snow Leopard developments, to optimize ScreenFlow quality, performance and usability on the Mac OS X platform. ScreenFlow also received the Best Mac OS X Leopard Application and Best Mac OS X Leopard Graphics and Media Application Design Awards from Apple in 2008.

In an effort to offer more choices for live video streaming, Telestream announced release of Wirecast™ 3.5.3 webcast software. Wirecast is a live video production tool that allows users to easily create real-time and on-demand broadcasts for the web. Version 3.5.3 adds Flash® media streaming through Akamai, a leading content distribution network (CDN).

“Customer response has been overwhelming to the recent support in Wirecast for Flash streaming,” said Barbara DeHart, VP of Marketing at Telestream. “We are pleased to extend this support to include Flash streaming through Akamai, giving users more choices for streaming their video broadcasts to audiences located anywhere in the world.”

MPEG Streamclip Great Tool for Converting MOD files

If you're in need for a tool to help you with the conversion of .MOD files on Mac. MPEG Streamclip is a tool that you should consider. If you're using SDHC Memory Cards when you connect your camera on the Mac you can locate all of your video files by opening the Memory Card and navigating to the .MOD files. The .MOD files are basically MPEG-2 Program Stream files with the .MOD extension.

Recently I had two encoding projects where about 300-400 .MOD files needed to be converted for encoding in iMovie for Summer Art Camp students in Ohio and for Windows Movie maker for Summer Leadership Academy students in Florida.

Here were some benefits that I saw using MPEG Streamclip for the conversions:

• Batch encoding of 200 .MOD files to .MOV or .WMV could be done easily
• Telestream's Flip4Mac Plug-in is available from within MPEG Streamclip
• You can watch a video preview of the videos being converted
• Adjustments to Audio, Brightness, Contrast and Saturation can made during batch encoding
• The tool is Free
• Conversions happen quickly

Here's a look at the Batch List for encoding numerous files



Here's a look at the main interface where .MOD files can be converted to DV/DVCPro-NTSC .MOV.

Streaming and Compression Companies at NAB 2009

Some Streaming and Compression Companies to check out at NAB are Telestream, Sorenson Media, Wowza Media Systems, Digital Rapids, Inlet Technologies, Kulabyte and HaiVision. Wirecast is the must see tool if you visit the Telestream booth. Sorenson Media is always a must see for NAB. Wowza Media Systems has new server developments and Digital Rapids has automatic publishing after encoding that you definitely should see.

Also, make sure you also stop by the Inlet Technologies' booth to view their Semaphore product. Lastly, visit companies, Kulabyte and HaiVision to check out their Live HD Encoding tools. These are only a few of the items to see at NAB 2009.

Wirecast 3.5.1 has Flash Live Streaming Support

Telestream's Wirecast encoding tool version 3.5.1 was already an amazing tool for live streaming but things just got better. Now Wirecast has support for Flash streaming in the H.264 flavor. This brings a much needed improvement for those doing live encoding on the Mac platform. One catch is you'll need to have an Intel based Mac to have the new Flash encoding support. PC users also benefit from the latest release but it's not as important because PC users already have live encoding tools such as On2 Flix live and Flash Media Live Encoder to choose from. Both On2 Flix live and Flash Media Live Encoder are not available on the Mac platform. So, certainly the Wirecast 3.5.1 release will make Mac folks happy. Buffering is also much better with this latest version. For those doing live encoding with Wowza Media System's Wowza Media Server Pro you can improve your buffer times for Flash Streaming by going with Wirecast over using QuickTime Broadcaster. Many thanks to Telestream for the much need Flash Live encoding support for Mac users.

Wirecast Brings Live Video Production for Webcasts

A new real-time video production software product for Mac and PC users was added to Telestream's product lineup last summer when the company acquired Vara Software Ltd. Wirecast is a desktop application that turns any Mac or PC into a video studio, allowing users to quickly and easily capture live events, create and distribute content for real-time web delivery. Wirecast is useful for a broad range of businesses, including entertainment companies and corporate communications departments. Users can stream multiple live video cameras, while dynamically mixing in other media. Features include chroma key, built-in titles and a layering system. Live Earth, one of the world's largest webcasts, was powered by Wirecast, providing on-demand footage to more than 10 million simultaneous viewers on MSN.com.

Episode Encoder Available for Windows

Telestream announced an important milestone for its Episode Series media encoding software products. Previously only offered on the Mac platform, version 5.1 extends Telestream's Episode and Episode Pro desktop encoding products to the Windows operating system. Version 5.1 also brings watch folders to Episode desktop products for both Mac and PC users. Episode provides universal transcoding between virtually any video and audio format, offering ultimate flexibility in a single software package.

"With the addition of Windows support and watch folders, Episode 5.1 is more accessible and useful than ever," observed digital video compression expert Nate Caplin. "Episode Pro's deep format support and comprehensive set of professional-grade filters make it an essential part of my video transcoding toolkit. Whether I need to convert files for post-production or produce files for the web and mobile devices, I've never met an encoding challenge I couldn't solve with Episode Pro."

Episode products provide a fast, flexible and future-proof solution for virtually any SD or HD compression need. Episode desktop products include extensive fine-tuning compression capabilities, batch encoding and many presets which enable users to quickly create extremely high-quality output files. Cross-platform support in Episode and Episode Pro 5.1 means that users and organizations no longer need to learn and support multiple encoding tools for different purposes. The addition of watch folders in version 5.1 saves time and effort by enabling users to simply drop finished projects into folders for automatic encoding.

"Episode Pro is the closest thing I've ever found to a universal anything-in, anything-out transcoder," adds Caplin. "But its power goes beyond simple conversion and compression. What really sets Episode apart is the ability it gives me to easily massage any video source into clean output by applying its extensive set of video and audio pre-processing filters. With Episode Pro, I feel like I'm in control of my video."

Episode Series provides scalability from standalone desktop media encoding applications for individual users to powerful, server-based encoding applications for larger organizations with higher volume needs. Known for speed, quality and ease of use, Episode products simplify content repurposing for distribution to the growing number of digital media channels such as Web, DVD, IPTV, mobile phones and portable devices.

Version 5.1 offers a number of powerful new features and enhancements. With extended MXF decode and encode support, Episode continues to expand support for broadcast workflows and playout servers such as Avid, Omneon and K2. Episode now offers more robust, intelligent monitoring of incoming media to further automate and fine tune file transfer into Episode Engine for encoding and delivery to specified destinations.

Telestream's Pipeline device allows for media ingest directly from SDI tape or live sources into Episode Engine. In version 5.1, users can simultaneously encode media into any format with Episode Engine while it is being ingested with Pipeline saving valuable time in critical workflows.

For Mac desktop users, version 5.1 adds enhanced functionality to the Apple Final Cut Compressor plug-in. In addition to encoding to any format, users can now adjust settings for Windows Media and Flash encoding including resize, deinterlace and frame rate.

Cross-platform Episode desktop encoders for Mac OS X and Windows are available in two versions. Episode imports virtually any file format, including broadcast and professional formats, and encodes media to all major Web, DVD authoring, mobile and portable device formats, including Flash 8/9, Windows Media, QuickTime, H.264, VC-1, 3GPP, MPEG-1/2/4 and more. Episode Pro includes all of the same features and formats plus encoding to high-end broadcast and professional formats such as GXF, MXF, H.264 High Profile, DVCPRO HD, mobile multi-bit rate and more.

Episode desktop products are now available for online purchase at http://www.telestream.net. Both the desktop and server products are also available from Telestream's worldwide network of resellers and distributors, as well as Apple online stores.

Telestream Introduces Drive-in for Disc-Free DVD Storage

Telestream, the provider of Flip4Mac Windows Media Components for QuickTime, announced a new product for digital media enthusiasts. Drive-in is a first-of-its-kind software application that allows Mac users to create and store images of digital video discs (DVDs) on personal computer hard drives. Released Friday, September 5, Drive-in provides travelers and home theater enthusiasts with quick, easy access to personal DVD movie collections for playback on laptops, desktop computers and home entertainment systems. A Windows version is planned for future release.

Drive-in provides all the benefits of DVDs, however disc-free hard drive storage offers a number of advantages over conventional physical DVD storage. Drive-in provides a richer user experience, for browsing, searching and accessing movies. Plus, the risk of misplacing or damaging physical discs is eliminated. Home theater users can consolidate their movie libraries onto a single, secure location. For travelers, drive-in saves battery life by removing the need to search and spin an optical disc, enabling viewing of several movies on a single laptop battery.

"Any family that has a collection of DVDs is well aware of the hassles of losing and damaging personal DVD movie discs," said Dan Castles, CEO of Telestream. "Our goal with Drive-in is to preserve all the original content, while improving search, storage and retrieval. Drive-in provides a great playback experience on personal computers. It removes the hassles of the physical disc and allows users to store away their DVDs, so they are not lost or damaged."

Under license by the DVD CCA and DVD FLLC, Drive-in creates an image that is an exact duplicate of the information that is on the owner's original DVD disc, thus preserving original content protection. In addition, Drive-in locks the software to the owner's computer and locks the images to the software. Drive-in allows users to play movie images on computers that they own, but it does not allow users to share their images with others.

Drive-in also preserves the quality, navigation and special features of the original DVD. Additional helpful features include the ability to store thumbnails of cover art, names of actors, and movie descriptions which simplifies searching, browsing and selection of movies. Users can play Drive-in software using Apple's DVD Player or Front Row to further enhance the user experience.

For more than a year, tens of thousands of users have participated in the Drive-in public beta. Digital media enthusiast, Jeff Puritz, reports, "I have been looking for exactly this program for a long time. I have no interest in stealing video but want to keep some DVDs on my hard drive for travel."

In Dave Peterson's article, Building a Disc-Free DVD Library With Drive-in which appears on GadgetyTech.com, he says of Drive-in, "I like the idea of being able to load in all my DVDs for ease of access and still have all the features built into the disc. Picture quality of the video image is excellent, the same as if you were running it from the original disc, and all menu and special feature content is available as it would be on the disc."

Michael Driskill writes, "I've been storing DVDs left and right. The saved movies are just like the original; no loading problems, nice product."

Drive-in is now available in two versions; a single-seat and a multi-seat that enables users to image and playback DVDs on up to five computers in a household. The single-seat version is priced at $39, while the multi-seat version is $59. Drive-in is available for download and immediate online purchase at www.flip4mac.com. A quick video user tutorial is also available at www.flip4mac.com . More information about Telestream is available at www.telestream.net.

Full Disclosure: Author, Derrick Freeman, serves as a consultant for Telestream.

Telestream Acquires Live Streaming Company Vara Software

Telestream, the provider of Flip4mac, Episode and FlipFactory content repurposing and workflow automation products, today announced that it has completed the acquisition of European-based Vara Software Ltd., a privately-held company. The acquisition adds the products, technologies and employees of Vara Software to those of Telestream, Inc., a privately-held US-based company. Vara Software brings successful, award-winning live production and streaming products to the Telestream product family. The acquisition expands Telestream's reach beyond encoding-based media workflow solutions for leading broadcast, media and entertainment companies to include powerful tools for real-time creation and distribution of video content over the Web for a broad range of businesses.

Vara Software provides real-time production tools, including webcasting, screencasting and rich media presentation products for entertainment, corporate communications, education and training. Webcasting allows companies to reach large, dispersed audiences by distributing content over the Internet, either live or on demand. Screencasting combines screen captures, video recordings and audio narration to provide cost-effective software training and sharing of computer desktop activity over the Internet.

"Vara Software is a highly-regarded, award-winning company that has been recognized by industry leaders such as Apple, Inc.," said Dan Castles, CEO of Telestream. "The ability to quickly capture live events, create and distribute content for Internet-based content delivery is experiencing explosive growth. We believe the live element is going to be even more important going forward. While Vara Software products currently target individual users and departments within larger organizations, the technology is well suited to easily migrate to enterprise-level solutions."

The acquisition moves Telestream into the real-time production end of the digital media supply chain. Vara Software products are an ideal fit for the millions of Telestream Flip4Mac Windows Media component and Episode desktop encoder users who might benefit from these powerful yet easy-to-use video production tools. Telestream is well positioned to leverage this innovation for its higher-end enterprise-level applications. The company also plans to leverage its existing technologies to add greater value to Vara Software products.


Full Disclosure: Author, Derrick Freeman, serves as a consultant for Telestream.