The Best Approach for HTML5 and Video Surveillance

April 27, 2021 - PRLog -- With the world rapidly moving to putting everything on the cloud, companies and organizations need to adapt and pivot in order to survive. Reduced cloud costs over the past few years, along with increased operational efficiency, and remote access have further propelled this trend.

Given these factors, and with access from any web browser, it has become essential for video surveillance systems to support HTML5 video. This is how VXG Inc. fits in: by providing end-to-end software for all video monitoring and video streaming needs, such as mobile video and web video players. Embed video to any website, source, or device, and convert video output from any file format, such as mp4 to HTML5.

Pre-HTML5 protocols

Before HTML5 and HTML video, to have a video file play on a webpage, users would need to use a plug-in like Adobe Flash Player or VLC. With the introduction of HTML5 video streaming, users can now place videos directly into the page itself. This allows video playback on pages that are designed for mobile devices, as plug-ins like Adobe Flash Player don't work on Android or iOS.

There are several roadblocks to overcome for video surveillance and the security industry. The major obstacle is the main video streaming protocol in video security, which is Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP). RTSP usually creates a TCP session for a handshake between a player and a camera and then transfers media data over TCP or UDP.

The problem is that all modern Web browsers don't allow raw TCP connections. For a long time the workaround was to use a VLC plug-in. When browsers stopped supporting plug-ins and Chrome became the dominant browser, VXG was the first to introduce a Chrome plug-in (based on NaCL technology). This became a popular solution for several years as it worked with multiple sources and modern browsers. Another alternative is to ask users to use an older version of Internet Explorer with a VLC plug-in. However, that is the least robust, and user-friendly option.

HTML5 compliance

Today, all modern browsers require strict compliance with HTML5 video players. Requiring all communication to be over HTTP or WebSocket protocols, with an exception of several special media delivery protocols like WebRTC. This gives two choices: 1) support one of the HTML5 [video embed] compliant protocols on a camera; 2) use a proxy or a cloud server to translate RTSP to HTML5 protocol.

Contact:
Andrew Hurley
VXG Inc.
77 Bloor St West, Suite 600
Toronto, ON
M5S 1M2, Canada
+1 866 416 0159 ex.104
andrew@videoexpertsgroup.com
http://www.videoexpertsgroup.com