Minute Calculation Methodology

  1. Definitions
    1. “Billable Minute” means an Output Minute multiplied by both the resolution and codec multipliers set forth below.
    2. “Custom Live Configuration” means a Live Encoding that does not start with the feature limited Live Encoding HD option.
    3. “Encoding” means the general process of transforming the original input stream into one or more output streams using different configurations (codec, resolution, bitrate, codec parameters, etc.) performed by the Bitmovin Encoding Service (Managed Cloud) and Bitmovin Encoding Software (Cloud Connect).
    4. “Error” has the meaning assigned to it in Support Packages Definitions and Services, which can be viewed at https://bitmovin.com/_espds/.
    5. “Excluded Problem” has the meaning assigned to it in Support Packages Definitions and Services, which can be viewed at https://bitmovin.com/_espds/.
    6. “Input Bitrate” means the file size of the input file to be Encoded in MB divided by its duration in Input Minutes, as measured in Mbps and without regard to how many video streams or audio streams are included in the input file. In the case of a concatenated workflow (i.e., multiple files stitched together), the maximum file size of each file will be used for the calculation. In the case that merging is used (e.g. audio merge), the Input Bitrates of each file will be summed together.
    7. “Input Minute” means a minute of the original file or stream inputted into Bitmovin Encoding Service or Bitmovin Encoding Software.
    8. “Live Encoding” means the process of transforming the original real-time input streams into one or more real-time output streams using different configurations (codec, resolution, bitrate, codec parameters, etc.) performed by the Bitmovin Encoding Service (Managed Cloud) and Bitmovin Encoding Software (Cloud Connect). 
    9. “Live Encoding HD” means a Live Encoding that starts with a limited number of features that can be implemented and limits on renditions, bitrates and outputs. 
    10. “Live Units” means the metered and billable component that a Company pays for, only applied in relation to certain Live Encodings.
    11. “Output Minute” means a minute of encoded output from the Bitmovin Encoding Service or Bitmovin Encoding Software.
    12. “Running Minute” means a minute recorded in the period between a start Encoding and stop Encoding command.
    13. “Resolutions Formats” are defined according to the following table:
      Resolution Frame Resolution
      SD shorter side up to 719 px
      longer side up to 1279 px
      HD shorter side up to 1080 px
      longer side up to 1920 px
      4k UHD shorter side up 2160 px
      longer side up to 3840 px
      8k UHD shorter side up 4320 px
      longer side up to 7680 px
    14. “Transmuxing” means the process of putting the raw encoded streams into a container format (fMP4, TS, MP4, etc.).
    15. “VOD Encoding” means the process of transforming the original file-based input stream into one or more output file-based streams using different configurations (codec, resolution, bitrate, codec parameters, etc.) performed by the Bitmovin Encoding Service (Managed Cloud) and Bitmovin Encoding Software (Cloud Connect).
  2. Formula
    1. To calculate the applicable Billable Minute, the following multipliers will be applied to the Output Minutes of each Encoding job independently. The Usage Fees will be calculated by adding the Billable Minutes of each Encoding job. This formula applies to all VOD Encodings and to Live Encodings that use a Custom Live Configuration.
    2. Live Units will be multiplied by Running Minutes at a fixed rate defined in the section 5 Live Encoding Options. This applies to Live Encoding HD. The UsageFees will be calculated by adding the Live Units of each Encoding job.
  3. Output

    Bitmovin calculates the multiplier for each Encoding job by multiplying the following resolution and codec multipliers:

    1. Resolution Multipliers.
      1. No multiplier for SD.
      2. Two (2) times Output Minutes for HD.
      3. Four (4) times Output Minutes for 4k UHD.
      4. One hundred-twenty (120) times for Output Minutes for 8k UHD.
      5. For anything not defined in 1.8 “Resolution Formats” custom pricing will be applied.
    2. Codec Multipliers
      1. Video
        1. No multiplier for H.262/MPEG-2 Video.
        2. No multiplier for H.264/AVC.
        3. No multiplier for VP8.
        4. Two (2) times Output Minutes for H.265/HEVC.
        5. Two (2) times Output Minutes for VP9.
        6. Ten (10) times Output Minutes for AV1.
      2. Video Add-ons
        1. One-point-five (1.5) times Output Minutes for HEVC Main 10.
        2. One-point-five (1.5) times Output Minutes for VP9 10-bit.
        3. One-point-five (1.5) times Output Minutes for HDR10 to SDR conversions.
        4. One-point-five (1.5) times Output Minutes for HLG to SDR conversions.
        5. Four (4) times Output Minutes for Dolby Vision.
        6. Five (5) times Output Minutes for Dolby Vision to SDR conversion.
        7. Four (4) times Output Minutes for Dolby Vision to HDR10 conversion.
      3. Audio
        1. Zero-point-two-five (0.25) times Output Minutes for AAC Audio.
        2. Zero-point-two-five (0.25) times Output Minutes for MP2/MP3 Audio.
        3. Zero-point-two-five (0.25) times Output Minutes for OPUS Audio.
        4. Zero-point-two-five (0.25) times Output Minutes for VORBIS Audio.
        5. Zero-point-two-five (0.25) times Output Minutes for PCM Audio.
        6. One (1) times Output Minutes for Dolby Digital Audio.
        7. One (1) times Output Minutes for Dolby Digital Plus Audio.
        8. Four (4) times Output Minutes for Dolby Atmos Audio.
        9. One (1) times Output Minutes for DTS:HD Audio.
        10. Four (4) times Output Minutes for DTS:X Audio.
      4. Codec Presets
        1. Pre-defined Presets
          1. H.262/MPEG-2 Video
            Preset Multipliers
            XDCAM HD 422 2
          2. H.264/AVC
            Preset Multipliers
            LIVE VERY LOW LATENCY 1
            LIVE LOWER LATENCY 1
            LIVE LOW LATENCY 1
            LIVE STANDARD 1
            LIVE HIGH QUALITY 1
            LIVE VERY HIGH QUALITY 1.25
            LIVE ULTRA HIGH QUALITY 1.5
            VOD ULTRA HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD SUPER HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD EXTRA HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD VERY HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD SPEED 1
            VOD STANDARD 1
            VOD QUALITY 1.8
            VOD HIGH QUALITY 2.2
          3. H.265/HEVC
            Preset Multipliers
            LIVE LOW LATENCY 1
            LIVE HIGH QUALITY 1.25
            VOD ULTRA HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD SUPER HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD EXTRA HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD VERY HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD HIGH SPEED 1
            VOD SPEED 1
            VOD STANDARD 1
            VOD HIGH QUALITY 2.2
          4. VP9
            Preset Multipliers
            VOD SPEED 1
            VOD STANDARD 1
            VOD HIGH QUALITY 1.3
          5. AV1
            Preset Multipliers
            VOD SPEED 1
            VOD STANDARD 1
            VOD QUALITY 1.8
        2. For any other codec configuration, custom pricing will be applied, defaulting to the highest preset multiplier of the codec used for that configuration.
  4. Input

    Bitmovin calculates the multiplier for each Encoding job by multiplying the following input codec and bitrate multipliers:

    1. Codec Multipliers
      1. Two (2) times Output Minutes for input files with J2K or ProRes Codec.
    2. Input File Bitrate Multipliers will be applied according to the following table
      Input Bitrate [Mbps] Multipliers
      0-100 One (1)
      101-200 One-point-two-five (1.25)
      201-500 One-point-seventy-five (1.75)
      501-1000 Two-point-five (2.5)
      1001-2000 Four (4)
      2000+ Custom
  5. Live Encoding Options

    Bitmovin offers Live Encoding with two pricing options, Custom Live Configurations and Live Encoding HD.
    1. Custom Live Configurations allow the Company to use the complete set of Live Encoding features in any combination that is technically viable. The Usage of Custom Live Configurations  is measured in  Billable Minutes.
    2. Live Encoding HD offers Live Encoding with a reduced set of features. Usage of  Live Encoding HD  is measured in one Live Units per Running Minute.
  6. Additional Features

    Bitmovin calculates the multiplier for each Encoding job by multiplying the following additional feature multipliers:

    1. One (1) additional Output Minute for Object Detection.
    2. One-point-one (1.1) times Output Minutes for Per-Title.
    3. One-point-two-five (1.25) times Output Minutes for 2-Pass Encoding.
    4. One-point-three (1.3) times Output Minutes for Quality Control – PSNR.
    5. Two (2) times Output Minutes for 3-Pass Encoding.
    6. Six (6) times Output Minutes for Enhanced De-Interlacing Filter.
  7. Errors and Cancelation
    1. Bitmovin does not charge for Errors caused by the Bitmovin Solution.
    2. Any Encoding job which results in an Excluded Problem, which are caused by, including but not limited to, corrupted input files, non-accessible output destinations or misconfiguration, Company will be charged for the applicable number of Billable Minutes of Output prior to the Excluded Problem.
    3. In the event that Company cancels an Encoding job prior to such job’s completion, Company will be charged for the applicable number of Billable Minutes or Live Units of output prior to such cancelation.
  8. Transfer and Egress
    1. Should Company transfer its Encoding outputs out of the cloud provider in which the Encoding has been performed, Bitmovin will charge egress Fees to Company. Company will be charged for such transfers at a rate of $0.18 per GB transferred from Bitmovin’s infrastructure to the internet.
  9. How Transmuxing Minutes are Calculated
    1. Bitmovin does not apply additional charges for the first output format (fMP4, TS, CMAF, WebM, MP4, MOV, etc.).
    2. Bitmovin charges an additional zero-point-two-five (0.25) minute for each Output Minute of each additional output format which is transmuxed.*
  10. Billing Increments
    1. Encoding jobs are billed in 10-second increments, with a minimum of 10 seconds.
  11. Prewarmed Encoder Pools
    1. Prewarmed Encoder Pools are billed per minute of runtime, multiplied by the number of instances in each running pool. The per-minute price is $0.0206 per minute.
  12. Storage and CDN
    1. Storage is billed on a per GB per month basis. The price is $0.0245 per GB per month.
    2. CDN is billed on a per GB of traffic basis. The price is $0.015 per GB.

*files can be unencrypted, encrypted and/or DRM protected, each of them would count as a separate output format.

DATE: As of July 1, 2023

Bitmovin Inc
1444 Wazee Street, Suite 133
Denver, CO 80202
Phone: 1-800-690-1826

Schleppe Platz 7, 9020 Klagenfurt
Austria, Europe
Phone: +43 463-203-014