A Beginner’s Guide to Video Hosting

‍Video content has nowadays become one of the most popular means of communication with the audience. Videos are used for marketing, brand popularization, teaching and coaching, as well as for internal communication within companies. That is no surprise as videos are illustrative, easy to comprehend, entertaining, and engaging. These qualities make online video content one of the important ways of connection with people. Making a video is just one of the steps of reaching out to the audience, another one is uploading it for everyone to see. That’s where the right choice may be crucial.

So, let’s dive into the world of the possibilities of video hosting services.

What is Video Hosting?

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No matter if you already have a video that you want to share with your viewers, or are only at the developing stage of your video content, you need to upload this video in order to distribute it. And that’s what web video hosting is.

There are two options of video hosting:

1. Self- hosting, you can store the videos on your own site server. Self-hosting videos takes a lot more time, resources, and technical skills, that’s why turning to a video hosting platform is a more popular solution for individuals and businesses.

2. Video hosting platforms, you can store videos on a server of a video hosting service picking the best suitable for you. With this option you upload your video to a chosen video hosting platform and then embed the video on your own website, blog, or social media. Most third-party video hosting services give your viewers the opportunity to access your video at their website. Professional video hosting companies give an extensive set of tools and features that are designed to help you manage and promote your video content.

The only question that may cross your mind is what platform to choose, and if self-hosting is a good option. And the answer depends on your budget, promoting strategy, and features that are essential to you and your business when it comes to video content.

How Do Hosting Platforms Differ?

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There’s a great variety of video hosting companies with diverse features to choose from. The main differences can be divided into two groups: your experience as a presenter and viewer experience.

The main features that differ from platform to platform and may be important for businesses:

1.    Analytics that a video hosting service provides. Some of them give information only about the amount of views, likes and dislikes, others deliver an extended analysis of viewer interaction with the video.

2.    Customer support. Video hosting companies may provide constant maintenance assistance, or just some advice from time to time.

3.    Compatibility with other software. Some video hosting platforms may have different systems for embedding video.

4.    Pricing can play a big part in the decision making. Some services even provide different pricing plans depending on the features you want to apply.

When it comes to viewer experience, here you have to decide on what you want your audience to see.

1.    Advertisements. Many free video hosting platforms have ads that play during videos.

2.    Auto-play. Some video hosting services give the opportunity to make your video play automatically when entering your website.

3.    Recommended videos. There’re services that recommend videos after playing yours.

4.    Branding and customization. With these features your audience can have a comprehensive experience of your brand.

All the video hosting companies provide a combination of these features, so it’s only a matter of what are the key factors for you.

The Benefits of a Paid Video Hosting Platform

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Being in control of your brand marketing is important, and paid video hosting services give you that as well as freedom, touching on all the necessary aspects of video hosting.

Paid video hosting sites have many advantages, let’s have a closer look:

1.    Simplicity. You don’t have to learn coding or be an IT specialist to share your video content anywhere you want. You only need to copy the link, as simple as that.

2.    Security and privacy. Only you decide how, where, and when to share your video content, your intellectual property is safe, and no one can access it without permission.

3.    Access to unlimited storage. You don’t have to worry about the quality or choose one video over the other.

4.    Customization. Size, color, placement of your video player is up to you. It’s beneficial for branding and maintaining consistency of your brand colors application, which increases brand awareness and recognizability.

5.    No ads or recommendations. Your viewers will have a comprehensive experience without having to watch advertisements or being distracted by recommended videos that pop up after yours.

6.    Overall analytics is another factor in favor of paid video hosting companies. You receive all the necessary data for your marketing strategy, and through this data you can make amendments to your plan and content to suit your audience. In addition to such simple metrics as views and likes, you are also provided with the information on a viewer, where they are from, what device they used, how much of the video they watched, etc. Relying on all the metrics you can make content more viewed and more enjoyable for your audience.

Taking all of these features into account, you can see that the advantages of paid video hosting services may be crucial to branding and development of a company that uses video content as one of the main means of communication with the customer.

Is It Better to Host My Own Videos or Use a Video Hosting Site?

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There’re several aspects to consider when deciding on whether to host your own videos or to turn to a video hosting service. Mostly, they depend on your experience and the desired amount of time and money you are willing to spend on this matter.

Self hosting video content can be challenging as it requires lots of coding, more server storage and bandwidth for your website visitors to enjoy the content without any problems with the quality of it, and with good loading speed. One little clip demands a lot more storage than tons of images and text.

The main difference between self-hosting and third-party hosting is that video hosting companies are experienced in this area and they already know and apply all the necessary instruments in order to make it easier for you. They focus on the server storage and bandwidth of their website, provide you with secure video hosting, give you all the tools that you may need, including customization and analytics, they make sure that the videos are compatible with all the devices and browsers, and they also help with the promotion, as many of the video hosting platforms already have their audience that may be interested in your product and services. Hosting your videos on a third-party website is sure to reduce costs and stress that video hosting may involve as well as save a lot of your time. The process of using a hosting platform instead of self-hosting is a lot simpler, usually you don’t even have to think about the format of your video, a video hosting platform does everything for you. All you need to do is upload your video and copy the link.

To self-host videos, you’ll need time, a good marketing team, skillful IT specialists, and a budget. But video hosting companies bring all these elements to minimum, helping you concentrate on other essential aspects of your brand.

Pros of Free Video Hosting Sites

A limited budget should not be a reason to give up on video content, as there are plenty of free video hosting platforms to choose from with almost all the necessary features for simple use. Free video hosting websites can be a good option with their quite attractive advantages:

• They are, naturally, free of charge for all, those who share videos and those who watch them. This results in a great number of users and a wider outreach.
•  Another aspect which allows free video hosting companies to keep up with the paid ones is that they are easy and intuitive to use. Their popularity made them accessible for users with any level of experience.
• Most free video hosting platforms are compatible with almost any content management system software. You can upload a video in almost any format and share it by only just copying the link or the code of your video and pasting it into your website builder.
• Most free video hosting sites support videos in high definition as well, so there’s no need to sacrifice quality for free use of video hosting.

For these several reasons a free video hosting company can be a good choice if all you need is a wide outreach and simplicity in usage for you as a video content provider.

Drawbacks to Free Video Hosting Sites

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As nothing is perfect nor are free video hosting platforms. There are some undoubted disadvantages that may influence the choice of a video hosting website:

• Free video hosting platforms have advertisements, so any viewer is guaranteed to face the inevitability of watching ads. Such video hosting platforms as YouTube have ads before, during, and after every video, which can be an annoying experience for the audience even if there is an option of skipping them. But you can make this disadvantage work in your favor by turning advertising into a monetization tool.
• Usually free video hosting websites have recommendations of other videos after yours is over. This causes a reduced website engagement as viewers end up watching other videos instead of focusing on the content that you provide or engaging with your website. Competitors’ content may pop up and, in this case, you are now promoting their product or service, as well.
• These platforms may also have limited security and privacy. Some of the free video hosting platforms may have access to your content.
•  Free video hosting sites provide limited analytics, which may also be a drawback when planning your further brand marketing and future video content. Of course, you will probably have likes and dislikes, total views, but all the other important metrics won’t be accessible: who are the viewers, when they stopped watching, etc.

These drawbacks may be crucial to your brand or have no impact at all, but it’s important to know all the potential challenges.

What Does a Video Hosting Server Cost?

If you consider self-hosting video content, there’s much to think about, with everything coming down to the amount of money you are willing to spend, your resources, needs, and strategy.

The two main options of self-hosting are either an on-site server or a cloud-based one. With on-site server hosting the additional expenses include the necessary application, its licensing, every new user, module, and node that you add. A cloud-based hosting server requires an application subscription fee with licensing fee every specified period. No matter if you choose an on-site hosting server or a cloud-based server, there’re also expenses associated with recruiting and training of the IT staff necessary to maintain the server.

And, another point that should be considered, is how much storage is necessary for your video file hosting. The initial amount of storage is not always enough, and any additional storage extension is certain to increase the costs. Both a live server and a cloud-based server require installation, licensing, and well-trained maintenance staff, though cloud-based servers tend to have cheaper costs.

There’re also some potential risks that come with self-hosting video servers, such as possible breakdowns and malfunctions, space shortage, slowed down bandwidth, etc. With all these facts, you can consider all the sides of a video hosting server, and whether or not it’s a good idea for your business.

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What Differentiates the Most Common Hosting Platforms?

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Usually, when video hosting platforms are mentioned, the first thing that comes to mind is YouTube or maybe Vimeo, but there’s such a wide selection of services that you can use for video hosting with their own facilities. There are also different goals these sites can be used for, as some of them are private video hosting platforms, and some are better to use for marketing or hosting events, and some combine these options.

The main differences are based on 

• video specifications,
• amount of storage,
• security and privacy
• monetization tools
• advertisements
• marketing tools
• live streaming and recording
• customization
• cost, etc.

Here’s a list of video hosting sites that are used most commonly with their specifications and features.

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YouTube

YouTube video hosting is one of the most popular options with a large viewership.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 240p (426 x 240)

Maximum resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160)

Aspect ratio: 16:9 (black frame is added automatically)

Max file size: 128 GB

Max video length: 12 hours

Total file storage: Unlimited

Video format compatibility: MP4, MOV, MPEG4, FLV, AVI, etc.

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Pros

• Free unlimited storage
• Large audience
• Easily embedded on other websites

Cons

• Ads play automatically
• Limited privacy
• Distracting third-party ads and branding
• Monetization limits

Additional Features

• Possibility to hide a video from public viewing
• Ad-based monetization
• Live and VOD features
• Organization by playlists and channels

Suitable For

Audience building with limited budget, video podcast hosting, blogging.

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Vimeo

This platform was made for creative professionals making high quality content.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 240p (426 x 240)

Maximum resolution: 8K (8192 x 4320)

Aspect ratio: 16:9 (black frame is added automatically)

Max file size: 500 MB for free users, up to 256 GB for pro users

Max video length: Restricted by file size

Total file storage: 500 MB/week for free users, 20 GB/week for pro users

Video format compatibility: MOV, MPEG4, MP4, AVI, etc.

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Pros

• No ads
• Customizable video embeds
• Vimeo Create tools for professional social media videos
• Possibility to enable video downloads
• Available free use

Cons

• Low upload limits for free accounts
• Narrow audience

Additional Features

• Private video hosting
• OTT services
• Marketing tools
• Video conversion
• Live streaming

Suitable For

Creative professionals to engage audience and market services.

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Wistia

A marketing video hosting solution for businesses.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Maximum resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160)

Aspect ratio: Any

Max file size: 8 GB

Max video length: 2 hours

Total file storage: 3 videos (free), 10 videos (pro)

Video format compatibility: MP4 (recommended), MOV, AVI, etc.

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Pros

• Overall analytics
• Customizable embed player
• No ads

Cons

• No inherent audience
• Not really suitable for non-marketing purposes

Additional Features

• Single Sign-on integration is available with 2 identity providers
• Access control
• Geo-restriction
• Password protection
• Integration options
• Marketing tools
• Live streaming
• SEO tools

Suitable For

Marketing with advanced analytics, video conference hosting.

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Brightcove

A business video hosting platform for both external and internal use.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Max file size: No limits

Max video length: No limits

Total file storage: Varies by plan

Video format compatibility: MP4, MOV, FLV, AVI, etc.

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Pros

• CRM integration available
• Professional features and tools

Cons

• High pricing
• Complexity

Additional Features

• Live Streaming Encryption 
• Individual user activity tracking
• Video restriction for only internal viewing
• Geo-restriction
• Temporary video hosting
• Monetization options
• Global streaming
• Video API access

Suitable For

Business cloud video storage and hosting events.

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Cincopa

A multimedia hosting platform.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 144p

Maximum resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160)

Aspect ratio: 4:3, 16:9

Max file size: 1 GB/ 2 GB/ 20 GB (according to plan)

Total file storage: 5 videos/ 40 videos/ unlimited videos (according to plan)

Video format compatibility: AVI, MOV, WMV, MP4, 3GPP, 3G2, MPG, MPEG, etc.

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Pros

• Streaming tools
• Wide functionality
• Tech support
• Video analytics

Cons

• Video streaming is not the primary offering
• Complexity

Additional Features

• Secure streaming
• Monetization tools
• Live streaming
• Variety of integrations

Suitable For

Multimedia management for businesses.

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Twitch

A streaming video hosting that is popular among video game streamers, can be used for any type of live streaming and video uploading.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 720p (1280 x 720)

Maximum resolution: 1080p (1920 x 1080)

Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3

Max file size: Not specified

Max video length: 48 hours

Video format compatibility: MP4, MOV, AVI, FLV

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Pros

• Video hosting free
• Easy to share videos on social media
• Built-in tools to promote user engagement
• Audience analytics

Cons

• Strict community guidelines
• No privacy

Additional Features

• Subscription-based monetization

Suitable For

Twitch is best suitable for live streaming.

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Dailymotion

A platform for video hosting.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 240p (426 x 240)

Maximum resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160)

Aspect ratio: 16:9 (black frame is added automatically)

Max file size: 2 GB, up to 64 GB (Advanced status)

Max video length: 1 hour, unlimited (Advanced status)

Total file storage: Unlimited

Video format compatibility: MOV, MPEG4, MP4, AVI, etc.

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Pros

• Free unlimited video hosting with minor restrictions
• Few content restrictions

Cons

• Limited analytics
• Smaller audience
• Ads

Additional Features

• Private and password-protected videos
• Monetization tools
• Live streaming with real-time analytics

Suitable For

Professional hosting solution with limited budget.

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Facebook

A social media platform with the opportunity of building native video hosting.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 720p (1280 x 720) 

Maximum resolution: 1080p (1920 x 1080)

Aspect ratio: 16:9, 9:16, 2:3, 4:5, 1:1

Max file size: 4 GB

Max video length: 2 hours

Total file storage: Unlimited

Video format compatibility: MOV, MPEG4, MP4, AVI, etc.

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Pros

• Unlimited free video hosting
• Audience of the largest social media platform

Cons

• Ads
• Basic branded embedded player options
• Limited monetization options
• Security issues

Additional Features

• Live streaming
• “Facebook Watch”

Suitable For

Brand awareness, marketing and audience building with limited budget.

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Instagram

A popular social media platform mostly for sharing photos with an option of video sharing.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Recommended video resolution: 1080p (1920 x 1080)

Aspect ratio: 4:5, 9:16, 16:9, 1:1

Max file size: 4 GB, 3,6 GB for IGTV

Max video length: 1 minute,15 to 60 minutes for IGTV

Total file storage: Unlimited

Video format compatibility: MP4, MOV, etc.

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Pros

• Large audience
• Free unlimited storage

Cons

• Video hosting is not the primary objective
• Limited video formats

Additional Features

• IGTV
• Live streaming
• Private accounts
• Business accounts for professionals

Suitable For

Brand awareness and marketing, audience building.

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Twitter

A microblogging service with the option of sharing media files.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 32 x 32

Maximum resolution: 1920 x 1200 or 1200 x 1900

Aspect ratio: 1:2.39 - 2.39:1 range (inclusive)

Max file size:512 MB, up to 1 GB for Business accounts

Max video length: 140 seconds, up to 20 minutes for Business accounts

Total file storage: Unlimited

Video format compatibility: MP4, MOV

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Pros

• Large audience
• Unlimited storage

Cons

• Video length is limited to 140 seconds

Additional Features

• Live streaming
• Monetization
• Private accounts
• Business accounts
• API allows other web services and applications to integrate with Twitter

Suitable For

Brand awareness, marketing, and audience building.

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WordPress Video Hosting: Jetpack

A WordPress video hosting plugin.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Max file size: 2 GB (recommended up to 1 GB)

Max video length: Restricted by size

Total file storage: Not limited

Video format compatibility: MOV, MPEG4, MP4, AVI, etc.

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Pros

• Customizable video player
• Unlimited video hosting
• Global CDN

Cons

• Many features require paid subscription
• Limited analytics

Additional Features

• Media Library
• Unlimited logins for team members
• Playback speed control
• Mobile-optimized

Suitable For

WordPress site owners with a Jetpack subscription.

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Spotlightr (formerly vooPlayer)

A video hosting platform for small businesses, educators, and marketers.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 360p

Maximum resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160)

Total file storage: up to 600 GB (according to plan)

Video format compatibility: MP4 (recommended)

Pros

• No ads
• Customizable branding
• Full control over the embedded video player
• Advanced analytics
• Arrange contents through video

Cons

• Complexity

Additional Features

• Password protection
• Domain restrictions
• Private sharing links
• Marketing tools
• Integrations and API
• CRM integration

Suitable For

Data-driven small and mid-size businesses, educators, experienced marketers.

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SproutVideo

A professional video hosting site.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Max file size: Up to 100 GB

Max video length: Not limited

Total file storage: 500 GB

Video format compatibility: MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, etc.

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Pros

• Player customization
• Advanced analytics

Cons

• No free plans
• Complexity

Additional Features

• Customized privacy and security features
• API access
• VOD and live streaming
• Marketing tools

Suitable For

Business video hosting and digital marketing professionals, to create portfolios, tutorials, etc.

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Uscreen

A professional video monetization and distribution platform.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Maximum resolution: 1080p (1920 x 1080)

Max file size: 13 GB (recommended)

Max video length: Restricted by file size

Total file storage: 75000 minutes for Pro users

Video format compatibility: MP4 (recommended)

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Pros

• Customizable website
• Fast HD video hosting included in the platform

Cons

• No AVOD monetization
• Limited storage
• Price

Additional Features

• Full data ownership
• Secure checkout and payment
• Marketing tools
• OTT services
• VOD and live streaming
• Global CDN

Suitable For

Educators, influencers, and business owners, to build and grow an online community.

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Google Drive

A file storage and sharing service, a video hosting service with a big YouTube presence.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Maximum resolution: 1080p (1920 x 1080)

Max file size: Limited by storage

Total file storage: 15 GB of free storage, up to 5 TB of purchased storage

Video format compatibility: MPEG4, 3GPP, MOV, AVI, MPEGPS, etc.

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Pros

• Easy to use interface
• Custom link

Cons

• Limits on playback resolution
• Security risks
• Not designed for hosting and managing videos
• Errors uploading
• No community
• No analytics

Additional Features

• Videos are automatically processed into YouTube videos

Suitable For

More private video hosting, collaboration with team.

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HubSpot

Business video hosting with Marketing Hub solution.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Max file size: 1 GB (recommended)

Total file storage: Unlimited

Video format compatibility: MP4, MOV, MPEG4, M4V

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Pros

• Detailed analytics
• Reliable support

Cons

• Video streaming is not a primary offering
• Payment for all the tools

Additional Features

• Marketing tools
• Blogging tools
• Integrations
• SEO
• One-to-one videos

Suitable For

Marketing, team collaboration, blogging.

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Hippo Video

A professional video hosting platform.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 480p

Maximum resolution: 1080p (1920 x 1080)

Max file size: 3 GB

Max video length: 5 minutes to 2 hours

Total file storage: Unlimited

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Pros

• Wide range of hosting tools
• Customization options

Cons

• Errors in work

Additional Features

• Video security
• Monetization tools
• Marketing tools
• VOD and live streaming
• Automated transcoding
• API access

Suitable For

Business and educational video hosting, marketing, email campaigns.

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Vidyard

A video platform for marketing, communication, and sales.

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Video Upload Guidelines and Specifications

Minimum resolution: 360p (480 x 360)

Maximum resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160)

Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3

Max file size: 5 GB to 16 GB (according to plan)

Max video length: 1 hour (live stream)

Total file storage: Unlimited

Video format compatibility: WEBM, MP4, MKV, MOV

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Pros

• Comprehensive analytics
• Customization tools
• Technical support
• User community
• No ads

Cons

• Limited functionality for free users
• Consistency issues
• Complexity

Additional Features

• Video security
• Password protection
• Marketing tools
• Live streaming
• Integrations
• SEO optimization

Suitable For

Sales and marketing, corporate communication, streaming.

Is Self-Hosting an Option?

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Even after a closer examination of all the opportunities for video hosting, you can still be interested in the self-hosting option. It may seem as an appealing sense of a complete control over your own brand, but there’s a lot to consider.

Self-hosting means coding a video player into your website in comparison with just uploading a video to a video hosting platform. That’s why it can become very challenging, considering all the maintenance, specialists, and expenses it may involve.

Marketing your brand means thinking about your customers and viewers, and self-hosting means that you have to keep in mind viewer experience as well. The video should play smoothly and quickly without freezing, and that is determined by bandwidth and storage capacity, which means, basically, how many people can load the video at the same time without difficulties. Not many companies can afford servers that are able to meet all these requirements, with a possibility of exceeding server limitations pretty fast.

Self-hosting video content implies more work and more IT staff responsible for coding and maintaining video player functioning. People also use different browsers, which means that you’ll have to make different file types of your video for it to be compatible with all of the formats. And all these procedures of file conversion take too much time for just one video to be playable for all the viewers.

Third-party web video hosting platforms may be helpful at promoting your company as most of them already have their own audience that may be interested in your product or service. With self-hosting you’ll have to build a promotion strategy bearing in mind that you have to gain your audience without the help of a third-party platform. But at the same time there’s no risk of your viewers turning to your competitors, as you have their full attention.

Self-hosting is an option if you have time, money, and a solid strategy at your disposal. But, maybe, it’s just a matter of finding the right video hosting platform for you.

Choosing the Best Solution for Business

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Choosing the best video hosting sites becomes difficult due to the huge variety of them. And sometimes the choice may not be that obvious, that’s why it’s more productive to decide on the aspects that are more important to you and your business so that it narrows the amount of suitable options. There are some points you may want to look at to make the right choice.

1. Some platforms have editor tools, monetization tools, comprehensive analytics and a lot of other functions that you can use. Every video hosting platform has its own policy and level of security, as well as their own level of popularity, type of content, and target audience.

2. What is the budget? There’re a lot of cheap video hosting sites, as well as more costly ones with a wider set of tools or greater security, there’re free video hosting websites too. Most platforms have different pricing plans for different sets of tools and amount of storage.

3. How significant is customer support to you? If something can go wrong, it will, and if you have a strict deadline it may be crucial that somebody is there for you to help at any time.

If you know your audience and want to know even more, want to engage them, to make a difference, to share your vision of your brand and its place in the world, then visual content is an essential part of your strategy. Video hosting is a big step for any business or a professional. Of course, there’s no best solution suitable for everyone, every platform has something to offer.

Knowing all the video hosting solutions, the differences between self-hosting and third-party services, their pros and cons, all the dangers and risks, as well as all the possibilities that video hosting gives, makes this choice an informed and well-considered one. And being confident in this choice helps you make your business strategy work in the best way for you.

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