Despite Pixelon's earlier misrepresentations, Reeder says that a newer version of Pixelon's encoder does in fact rely on proprietary technology that puts the company on the cutting edge of Net video. "We have the most refined MPEG on the Internet," Reeder says, explaining that Pixelon uses patent-pending technology to slim down video before it is encoded. Reeder says that Pixelon worked with an outside company to design hardware that could replace the FutureTel equipment, but declines to name the firm.
Reeder says that the average MPEG file on Pixelon's site was encoded at rates below 500 kilobytes per second, or Kbps, which puts them on the lower limits of current MPEG 1 capabilities. Two MPEG experts, however, estimate the rates to be between 580Kbps and 800Kbps. "From what I can tell, [Pixelon's] videos are still encoded around 800Kbps," Marc Carver, an employee at Pixelon competitor Load Media, wrote in an e-mail to The Standard.
Reeder says that future versions of Pixelon's technology will rely on a compression technology known as MPEG 4, which is by far the most popular format used by Internet broadcasters.
