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Box.net to stream videos...

by Mark Hess
21 replies
I was recently turned onto Box.net | Online file sharing, content management, collaboration by a fellow Warrior as a way to share files like PDF or ZIP.

At first, I blew it off as I didn't really have a need to do those sorts of things.

But, I noticed they allow you to upload .flv files. So I tested this out as a way to stream my videos...

AWESOME!

You can just plug in the video link into any video player: TechSmith | Screencast.com, online video sharing, 2010-11-22_1722

Great to use for optimizepress videos, flowplayer, or JW player.

Stream your sales/squeeze page videos, video in membership sites, etc...

You can even embed the box.net video player on your site.

The best part, if you get the professional plan which is only $19.95 per month
you get 50GB of web storage (storage space for your videos) and UNLIMTED bandwidth.

The servers seem to be very fast, and they have some Fortune 500 companies as customers: Box.net | Over 60,000 businesses rely on Box.net daily - Financial Services, Retail, Architecture, Construction, Real Estate and many others

Just wanted to pass this along...
#alternative #amazon #cost #low #streaming #videos
  • Profile picture of the author Tim Franklin
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    • Profile picture of the author Mark Hess
      Originally Posted by Tim Franklin View Post

      Interesting, I have been following cloud technology for three years, now,

      but for the sake of conversation I am curious how is this cheaper than Amazon?
      UNLIMITED bandwidth and 50GB of storage for $19.95/month

      Amazon s3 is cool, but I had issues trying to figure out there site. This is much easier to use.
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      • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
        Originally Posted by Mark Hess View Post

        UNLIMITED bandwidth and 50GB of storage for $19.95/month
        How much of that are you actually using?

        Because the real attraction with Amazon S3 is that if you don't use it, you don't pay for it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Tim Franklin
    Yes, it can be a pain, that is sort of a drawback, I see what your saying, on bandwidth, thanks for the post, always like learning about other services
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  • Profile picture of the author Jesus Perez
    Mark, I've learned to fear the term "unlimited".

    From their TOS:

    You may not use the Services in a manner that results in excessive bandwidth usage, as determined by a representative of Box.net. Use of the Services on the Site as well as use of the Services on any desktop application will be applied toward such bandwidth usage.
    This could seriously mess things up if they decide to cut you off with hundreds of video links out there.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mark Hess
      Originally Posted by Jesus Perez View Post

      Mark, I've learned to fear the term "unlimited".

      This could seriously mess things up if they decide to cut you off with hundreds of video links out there.
      I know what you mean, I asked their customer service what the bandwidth limit was for the $9.95 plan and they said it was 2TB roughly 2000GB.

      They do have their own video player and such so I assume, they have no issues with people streaming videos (but we all know what happens when you assume)
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      • Profile picture of the author Wide
        Originally Posted by Mark Hess View Post

        I know what you mean, I asked their customer service what the bandwidth limit was for the $9.95 plan and they said it was 2TB roughly 2000GB.

        They do have their own video player and such so I assume, they have no issues with people streaming videos (but we all know what happens when you assume)
        Well,

        They are paying at least $300 per 100mbps of bandwidth (25.000GB).
        That means, $10 = 830GB

        So trust me, they WILL block you before you even come close to that 2000GB of a bandwidth he promised you.

        Also, bandwidth alone is not the only problem with "unlimited offers".

        They might turn you down (if your traffic is high) of other reasons too, such as server load.
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        • Profile picture of the author Mark Hess
          Originally Posted by Wide View Post

          So trust me, they WILL block you before you even come close to that 2000GB of a bandwidth he promised you.
          3 million users and 50,000 businesses, I'll take my chances....

          Also, they have their own video player so they expect people to stream video which you would think they already know how much bandwidth that uses.

          Make backups of all your stuff obviously...
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          • Profile picture of the author Wide
            Originally Posted by Mark Hess View Post

            3 million users and 50,000 businesses, I'll take my chances....

            Also, they have their own video player so they expect people to stream video which you would think they already know how much bandwidth that uses.

            Make backups of all your stuff obviously...
            Go give it a try, just keep in mind - there is no such thing as unlimited.
            Hostgator says unlimited too, and we all know how "unlimited" that is.

            But yes, you will probably never reach the upper limit.
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  • Profile picture of the author Peter Helps
    Sounds like a great alternative.

    Has anyone tested it on sites that have a lot of traffic? Are those Fortune 500 companies listed there just host the files or actually stream from there?

    I'm curious to hear how box.net performs as far as streaming large files when many people are watching the video all at once.

    Peter
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  • Profile picture of the author Diana Lane
    I'm quite happy with Amazon S3 at the moment, but it always bothers me a bit to think there might be very few alternatives to something that would cause problems if it ever ceased to be an option for some reason, however unlikely. Thanks for Plan B
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  • Profile picture of the author paulie888
    Thanks for sharing this, Mark. Video sharing is a fairly straightforward service, so I'd not be surprised if more services like box.net start showing up soon to challenge Amazon's supremacy in the marketplace, which has gone relatively unchecked so far.

    Paul
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  • Profile picture of the author Johnny12345
    Hey Mark,

    Good tip. I've never used S3, but I heard people complain (many times) about how difficult it is to use. You'd think Amazon would be able to make it simple!

    John
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  • Profile picture of the author powerspike
    I've just started using rackspacecloud CDN (content delivery network - same thing as amazon s3), it's really fast and alot easier to use then amazon s3, and i've found the "fee's" are alot cheaper as well.

    Their upload interface is very easy to use as well which is great.
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  • Profile picture of the author WD Mino
    Nice find mark, awesome 19.95 is a good price and seems like they offer you a good package for that too. 50 gb is a ton of video files so good find man
    cheers
    -WD
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  • Profile picture of the author Bruce Wedding
    I think for most of us, Amazon would be cheaper. And they now have a free version that will take care of many smaller marketers.

    AWS Free Usage Tier
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  • Profile picture of the author benz1
    I would doubt very much that the videos are "streamed" as this would require a streaming server. When played from a web server videos are "progressively downloaded" which is not the same as streaming and cannot support anywhere near as many simultaneous connections as a streaming server.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jason Fladlien
      Yeah there is no such thing as unlimited. I'd personally be scared to pay ONLY $20 a month for bandwidth. I have had several issues in the past with "unlimited" companies... even big ones with fortune 500 clients using them.

      Here's my last month's stats with s3: 1,778.661 GB and $281.68 for the total bill that month. To me, that's a bargain. It's ALWAYS up and it's 100% scalable... I never have to worry about any overages or anything.
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      • Profile picture of the author Mark Hess
        Originally Posted by Jason Fladlien View Post

        Yeah there is no such thing as unlimited. I'd personally be scared to pay ONLY $20 a month for bandwidth. I have had several issues in the past with "unlimited" companies... even big ones with fortune 500 clients using them.

        Here's my last month's stats with s3: 1,778.661 GB and $281.68 for the total bill that month. To me, that's a bargain. It's ALWAYS up and it's 100% scalable... I never have to worry about any overages or anything.
        When I first got started with box.net I had the $9.95 plan and sent a message to their customer service asking about bandwidth charges or limits: TechSmith | Screencast.com, online video sharing, 2010-11-23_2142

        They told me 2000GB (2TB) was the bandwidth limit per month on that plan but the $19.95 was unlimited.

        I'm not saying "unlimited" may be truly "unlimited" but right now I'm paying $9.95 for what you're paying $281.68 for and I know what I'm paying each month.

        Unless the company was lying and just happened to make up that 2000GB figure without knowing the costs associated with allowing that kind of bandwidth.

        I'm going to trust they did their math and give them a shot.

        Amazon S3 is cool and definitely scalable like you said, but I was just looking around for something a little different that would fit MY business and wanted to pass it along.
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  • Profile picture of the author Steve Wells
    I think that some of you are missing the point of Marks post possibly?

    Mark was making available some great knowledge and a possible alternative that others might find a use for, if it fits their business model.

    If it doesn't then use what does.

    Personally I have used Box.net for several years to deliver & store my digital products, along with digivendor pro. They work great together and have worked well for me with 0 issues since I have had implemented both of these services/products.

    I also use amazonS3 and its great, but like many have found out, its a bit user UN-friendly. So if your technically challenged, then another option could be Box.net.

    I pay just over $9.00 per month for 25 GB of storage.

    So, back to my point, if you want a reliable service to store your files, for a very reasonable amount of money and a place like Mark has mentioned to store and stream/play your videos from, then Box.net is a very viable option.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mo
      Amazon S3 is definiteley the way to go for low cost, secure and reliable video hosting.

      You just know it's not going to fall over, rip you off or die overnight!

      Takes a little while to set up, and if that's a problem, pay someone on here to do it for you or there are plenty of videos out there to show you how.

      Then you have the option of many great video players and online services to distribute your video content at a professional standard.
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