Windows Media Encoder Studio Edition Beta is an exciting new addition to the Windows Media tools family. It is a powerful tool for video professionals, optimized for the creation of high-quality offline encoding using Microsoft’s implementation of the VC-1 video standard (WMV9). Windows Media Encoder Studio Edition Beta provides the key features necessary to create next-generation video content and capitalize on the growing importance of scenarios around optical media and video-on-demand. With the final standardization of VC-1, “Studio Edition”, will prove to be an invaluable tool for the offline encoding community.

A link to Windows Media Encoder Studio Edition Beta will be posted at source as soon as it becomes available.

Windows Media Encoder Studio Edition includes the following capabilities, each crucial to the creation of the highest quality content:

Segment-based re-encoding This allows the content editor to adjust settings for specific segments of an encoded file, then re-encode only that segment. This capability applies to scenarios where the content editor attempts one or more “passes” at a given piece of content (content creators often use one or more passes to analyze the content, then subsequent passes to actually encode). This makes it possible to optimize the quality of each segment of a given clip, creating the highest possible quality even for clips with dramatically different attributes from one segment to the next. Full-bit-depth support Windows Media Encoder Studio Edition can seamlessly make the transition from 10-bit to 8-bit without introducing artifacts or contouring. By utilizing both random dither and error diffusion, Windows Media Encoder Studio Edition enables content creators to capture at full bit depth without resorting to truncating or rounding any of the bits. This makes it possible to encode to 8-bit without sacrificing quality. Hardware acceleration Studio Edition can be used in conjunction with hardware optimized for VC-1 video acceleration. This improves workflow and reduces encoding time. ISAN & Ad-ID support Studio Edition includes support for ISAN and Ad-ID metadata. These are metadata systems that help the audio/video industry create an identifier for any given piece of content, similar to what the ISBN standard for book publishing. ISAN relates to works with moving pictures, or parts directly related to works with moving pictures (such as a full audio track of a feature film). Ad-ID relates to all forms of advertising regardless of medium, and is an extension of the ISCI system. It overlaps ISAN for some audiovisual works, but is constrained in practice to advertising works. Each is widely used and Studio Edition makes it easy to include any ISAN or Ad-ID numbers associated with a given piece of content. As such, Studio Edition improves current workflow scenarios by supporting standards that make it easier to find and learn more about any given piece of audiovisual content. Support for multiple audio tracks Encoding from multiple audio and video sources Graphical bitstream analyzer This feature is an important step in verifying the quality of any selected clip.