August 2, 2007
Video editing for the YouTube generation
The pieces are starting to fall into place for the synergy demanded by Sony chief Howard Stringer and breaking down of silos between different divisions of the consumer electronics company.
Take online video. The company is just about there in what could be described as providing an end-to-end solution from the consumer’s camera viewfinder to a YouTube debut.
Sony’s answer to YouTube is Crackle, a relaunch last month of its Grouper acquisition, with the emphasis on more professionally produced video and high definition.
Crackle is working with Sony Electronics on the display of its internet content on TV and with the HD camera people on some as yet undisclosed features.
Camcorders themselves are already being designed for the YouTube generation, with simpler recording and uploading methods.
The software part of the puzzle that creates professionally edited pieces from raw footage and prepares them for uploading is Sony Creative Software’s Vegas Movie Studio, the best-selling video editing package.
Movie Studio is one of the products Sony acquired when it bought Madison, Wisconsin-based Sonic Foundry in 2003. Other products include Sound Forge Audio Studio and Acid Music Studio and all three are consumerised versions of professional products.
The Platinum Edition of Movie Studio, just released, adds Vista support and high-definition and surround-sound editing. Movie Studio also makes it easy to upload to Crackle or the 10-year-old ACIDplanet.com site – it provides a friendly interface with buttons like “Publish to Web” and a variety of options to reduce file sizes for faster transfers.
It’s also a relief to discover that the Sonic Foundry roots and a loosening of Sony’s attitude mean the software is not tied to Sony’s proprietary formats such as ATRAC and M2TS – import and export is possible for every flavour of Mpeg as well as Quicktime, AVI and Windows Media formats.
