MUMBAI: Animoto, the web application that lets users create personalized, professional-quality videos from their own photos and music, released high-resolution options to their service.
Animoto videos can now be purchased on DVD or downloaded in DVD-quality formats directly from the Animoto website, and users can enjoy their videos on computers, televisions, and even large projection screens.
"Animoto fans celebrate life with their family and friends by creating and sharing Animoto videos of their weddings, kids, vacations, sporting events, and other slices of life. Viewing those same videos in DVD-quality is an extraordinary experience and takes the production value of Animoto videos to a new level," said Animoto CEO & co-founder Brad Jefferson.
Animoto’s new DVD-quality videos are formatted at an 864-480 resolution and work seamlessly with both PCs and Macs. And while most online video plays at 15 frames-per-second (fps) or less, Animoto offers its DVD-quality videos at a stunning 24fps cinematic quality — the same frame rate in which movies and films are produced.
The cost to download DVD-quality videos is $5, and ordering physical DVDs is $20, plus shipping and handling. When users select the DVD-quality download option, a link to the file is emailed to them, offering both MP4 and ISO formats. The MP4 format is perfect for viewing on a computer, while the ISO format is for burning directly to DVD.
The heart of Animoto is its Cinematic Artificial Intelligence technology that thinks like an actual director and editor using the same sophisticated post-production skills and techniques that are used in television and film. The technology takes into account every nuance of a song: the genre, song structure, energy, rhythm, instrumentation, and vocals. No two videos are ever the same. Even videos generated with an identical set of images and music will each have a completely distinct set of motion design. Videos are produced in widescreen format, can be emailed and embedded in social network sites like Facebook and MySpace, and are now available in DVD-quality formats.
In recent months, Animoto won the Web Award in the "Film/TV" category at the 2008 SXSW Interactive Festival, where they also announced a YouTube music video production tool, a popular application for Facebook, and a Music Submission Program as a way for bands and artists to feature and promote their music on Animoto. While it’s free for Animoto users to create 30-second Animoto videos, the company offers premium services allowing users to create extended-length videos, and now to upgrade to DVD-quality videos.
