So why is it that so many small and medium sized businesses have yet to figure-out that they too can play in the big-bad world of web video? Well, it appears that many are not aware of just how accessible it is. That, and many SMB operators really don't understand just how powerful it can be to do something as straight-forward as embedding video in their web site.
Well, while it is true that web video has been the domain of the big-budgeted in the past (there's the hint - past), the truth today is that some very cool vendors have come to answer the call for the down-trodden masses we fondly call the SMB.
The opportunity today is indeed a beautiful thing for the SMB. Instead of facing the crazy expense of building the infrastructue themselves...dealing with specific servers and software where the dedicated servers alone could run $5,000 to $8,000 and the software coding and licensing another $8,000 to $10,000. Oh, and let's not forget about distribution...a good delivery network could run $3,000 to $5,000 per month! Really...it is not worth this kind of expense for a small guy to jump into the fray at that cost.
Hosted solutions make web video truly accessible for the, well, less-than-big-budgeted operation. Companies like UpStream networks www.upstreamnetworks.com, stream hoster www.streamhoster.com, or fliqz www.fliqz.com are just a few examples of what appear to be game-changing technologies (certainly for the SMB).
Very cool stuff...looking forward to speaking with these folks soon. So much happening and it's all great news! More to come (really)!
Hi Steve,
Great post and thank you for the mention. Would be happy to catch up with you any time.
Kris
Fliqz, Inc.
Posted by: Kris | April 14, 2008 at 12:59 PM