Most clients have a good idea of how they want to distribute their media once it is produced. Considering that a high degree of media is produced for a closed audience, such as a corporate environment, distribution is rarely considered. However, many clients want to get a wider audience for their media and for them, distribution success is everything. Here are some ideas to consider when distributing to the outside world, either to select audiences or the public in general.

Video Distribution: To date, and historically for some time, the most reliable form of video distribution is the simple VHS videocassette. This form is easy to store, reliable to play, inexpensive to produce and mail and nearly everyone has a VCR to watch it. Be aware, however, that throughout the world, various foreign countries use different "standards" of recording and playing video. Each of these standards may be recorded on a VHS videocassette, but one standard of recording may not play on another standard's VCR. In the USA and Japan, for instance, the standard is called "NTSC." In addition to NTSC, there are two other standards, SECAM and PAL (and two modifications of PAL that are only used in one country each). International video "standards" do not come into play in computer distributed video such as CDs, DVDs or Internet streaming.

CD-ROM and DVD: Video can be recorded on CDs and DVDs as well. These methods of distribution enjoy a long shelf life, are less expensive to mail, but more expensive to produce than VHS videocassette. While the amount of CD and DVD players is growing, there are nowhere near as many as there are VCRs. Finally, the world is still divided into various computer operating systems, like Microsoft, Mac, Unix and Linux, making the playback hardware for a CD or DVD highly fractionalized.

It should be noted also that CDs and, to a lesser degree, DVDs employ a compressed form of video that has less resolution than the original master tape. DVD resolution approaches the quality of VHS but has far superior sound. CDs employ various compression methods, the best of which are equivalent to DVD, but due to the limited storage capacity of CDs, the video is often much less resolution than VHS.

Today, DVD offers a useful method of distributing video where the producer wishes to incorporate additional information and interactivity. For instance, a DVD can hold a video with several language versions, and hundreds of pages of supporting text. Interactivity can be used for games, entertainment, learning, testing and any form of audience participation. DVD is, therefore, the preferred mode of interactive video distribution where the length of the video exceeds approximately 5 minutes. If the video is under 5 minutes, CD distribution may work as well and be somewhat less expensive to program and produce.

Streaming Media: Video can also be distributed over the Internet. Two methods are applied, streaming and direct download. Streaming, like broadcast television, provides a means for a viewer to screen a video as it is received in digitally compressed form. The data arrives on the computer, where it may be held briefly in a "buffer" and then played directly to the monitor one time, without being stored. Because the video is not stored, it takes less time to view.

Direct download of video works like any other file that is downloaded. The file is stored to a hard drive and then accessed by way of any one of several playback software products to be played as often as and whenever the recipient wishes.

Eventually, the amount of data that can be transmitted over the Internet ("bandwidth") will increase to the point where high quality video will be a viable option.

Duplication: Video, CD-ROM and DVD masters must be duplicated in order to be distributed. Click here to learn about economical duplication techniques.