Video encoding is the process of compressing video files in order to significantly reduce their size. Most of these services are intended for the consumption of video content over the web, in addition to various uses such as the conversion of analog recordings to digital.
Encoding is the key process that allows us to access audiovisual content on the Internet. This happens because the size of a raw video file is so large that it could never be played over our Internet connection, nor stored on a disc or DVD. Therefore, we can identify two main objectives when using video encoding:
- To get the content to reach as many users and platforms/devices as possible.
- To ensure the best performance available when delivering each video.
The operation of the encoding is based on the compression of the largest amount of data possible in the smallest amount of bits, being able to discard some details that the algorithm does not consider necessary. Therefore, one of the biggest problems of this process is to find what data can be discarded while ensuring a high video quality.
