Video is an electronic medium for capturing, storing, and playing back sequences of moving images with synchronized sound.
Since its development and widespread implementation, video has shaped entertainment, education, communication, and even memory itself.
A relatively new technology, video began in the early 20th century with mechanical television experiments by inventors like John Logie Baird. By the 1930s, electronic television had emerged, paving the way for the development of broadcast networks.
The 1950s through the 1970s were known as the golden age of analog video, with formats like VHS and Betamax revolutionizing home entertainment. In the 1980s and 1990s, camcorders and videotapes democratized the production of video. From the 2000s onward, the digital revolution, DVDs, Blu-ray, and eventually streaming, transformed how we consume and share video.
Analog video stores images as continuous electrical signals. While warm and nostalgic, it suffers from signal degradation, noise, and limited editing flexibility. Digital video encodes images into binary data. This allows for compression, error correction, and seamless editing. Formats such as MPEG, MP4, and AVI dominate today, enabling high-quality playback across various devices.
Video is nothing without a screen to bring it to life. Over time, display standards have evolved: standard definition (SD), 480p resolution, the norm for decades; high definition (HD), 720p and 1080p, offering sharper detail; ultra HD (4K & 8K), millions of pixels for cinematic clarity; refresh rates, from 24 fps in film to 120+ fps in gaming, frame rate defines smoothness; and aspect ratios, from the square-like 4.3 of old TVs to today's widescreen 16.9 and even ultra-wide formats.
Creating video is both an art and a science. It includes pre-production (storyboarding, scripting, and planning), production (cameras capture raw footage, with lighting and sound shaping the mood), post-production (editing software like Adobe Premiere, Final Cut, or DaVinci Resolve allows for cutting, color grading, visual effects, and sound design; and distribution (from film reels to YouTube, TikTok, and streaming platforms, distribution has never been more accessible).
Video is not just entertainment, it's a teaching tool. Film schools train professionals in cinematography, directing, and editing. Online platforms like Coursera, YouTube, and Khan Academy democratize learning, offering tutorials on everything from camera basics to advanced VFX. Media literacy education helps students critically analyze video content, understanding its power to inform, persuade, and manipulate.
From the early flickering black-and-white broadcasts to immersive 8K streaming, video technology has continually reshaped how we perceive the world.
Recommended Resources
Developed by Australian company Clipchamp Pty LTD, a subsidiary of Microsoft, Clipchamp is a freemium video editing tool. Web-based and non-linear, it enables users to import, edit, and export audiovisual material directly within a web browser window. The application is designed to be user-friendly for beginners. It features multiple options that enable further creativity and accessibility, including the ability to drag and drop files from a computer into a list of all uploaded media.
https://clipchamp.com/en/
The French online video platform is owned by Canal+. Prior to 2024, it was owned by Vivendi. Its North American launch partners included Vice Media, Bloomberg, and Hearst Digital Media. Dailymotion is among the earliest known platforms to support HD (720p) resolution video. It is available worldwide in 183 languages and multiple versions. Its content is organized into several categories, with the most popular categories highlighted. A search feature is also available.
https://www.dailymotion.com/
Hightower Video is an award-winning, AI-powered video production company that helps brands create television advertisements, social videos, and performance content to drive conversions. Founded in 2013 and based in London, Ontario, Canada, the company operates with a compact team that delivers full-service production, strategic planning, and media-buying expertise to clients around the globe. Its key services are defined, and notable clients and projects are highlighted.
https://www.hightower.video/
This is a modern video creation platform that makes content faster. It is a browser-based video creation platform designed to help teams produce high-quality visual content quickly and collaboratively. Centralizing project assets and feedback in a single workspace streamlines editing from the first draft to the final video. Its suite of AI tools automates tasks like subtitling, clip trimming, and background removal, enabling creators to focus on storytelling rather than technical details.
https://www.kapwing.com/
Real.com has long served as the consumer-facing hub for RealNetworks' flagship media products and services. It fulfills three core roles: as a distribution point, it provides secure downloads of RealPlayer and its related desktop utilities (RealPlayer Converter, RealDownloader, RealPlayer Cloud), as a product showcase and upsell engine, it highlights RealNetworks' newest innovations (RealTimes, the SAFR AI Suite, and Helix streaming server), and as a brand and community portal.
https://www.real.com/
The IBM platform delivers an end-to-end, cloud-based solution for streaming video, combining all phases of video delivery, from hosting through analytics, into a single service offering, offering video hosting, transcoding, live streaming, automated speech-to-text, and analytics. All features are unified within one cloud video platform to simplify deployment and management. Organizations often integrate IBM's video platform with Watson AI for richer metadata tagging.
https://video.ibm.com/
Video Candy is a free, browser-based video editor that provides every tool needed to edit videos online. It is designed to be easy to use and requires no downloads or installations. It operates on a freemium subscription model with usage tiers and add-on benefits. The free tier offers three watermark-free exports per day, with a 2GB file size limit. In contrast, monthly or yearly subscriptions provide higher file-size ceilings and additional benefits. Its pricing is listed on the site.
https://videocandy.com/
This is an online platform dedicated to delivering comprehensive information on video content, movie news, and reviews. The site offers industry updates, in-depth critiques, and specialized sections, including community game solutions and video conference coverage. The site is built on WordPress using the Hestia theme. Its video library features high-performance automotive footage, GoPro snowboarding adventures, underwater sequences, and other visually engaging content that appeals to viewers.
https://videocure.com/
Created in 1996 as a student endeavor at École Centrale Paris before going open-source under the GNU GPL in 2001, VideoLAN is a French non-profit association dedicated to developing and promoting free and open-source multimedia software. Its core projects include VLC media player, VideoLAN Movie Creator (VLMC), VideoLAN Server (VLS), Codecs and libraries, and VideoLAN Manager (VLMa). Licensure information is provided, along with how to contribute to the project.
https://www.videolan.org/
Videomaker is a bi-monthly online magazine dedicated to every stage of video production, from initial concept and planning through shooting, post-production editing, and distribution. Each issue features in-depth articles and case studies led by industry professionals, hands-on tutorials on camera techniques and editing software, technology reviews, and inspirations. Videomaker Plus builds on the core magazine by offering an all-in-one learning platform, whose features are listed.
https://www.videomaker.com/
Vidmax is a video aggregator where users discover and share short-form clips spanning news, stunts, shocking moments, and comedy. It curates the latest viral content under categories like "Hot posts," "Trending," and "Newest," allowing anyone to upload their own video and engage with an active comments community. Anyone can submit clips. Other features include trending feeds, community interactions for each video, and the "hot" and "new" tags, which allow users to find what's viral.
https://vidmax.com/
Vodpod is a professional video editing company targeted towards creators, business owners, and anyone looking to expand their reach via the power of YouTube, TikTok, Instagram Reels, and other digital media platforms. Several articles on video editing, video technologies, and vlogging are provided. The company also offers fast-paced video editing designed to increase watch time, audio retention, and social media growth, featuring fast turnaround times, editing, and AI-enhanced cuts.
https://www.vodpod.com/
The online, cloud-based video editing platform works in web browsers and mobile devices, such as Android and iOS. WeVideo offers subscription-based video editing services to both commercial and educational markets. They offer both a free and a paid option. Video learning tools include video creation, interactive video, AI Assist, white-label API, video hosting, and content creation. Its platform, use cases, educational content, pricing, and partnerships are highlighted.
https://www.wevideo.com/
YouTube is an Amerian online video-sharing and social media platform owned by Google. It was founded in 2005 by Chad Hurley, Jawed Karim, and Steve Chen, and was later acquired by Google in 2006. Headquartered in San Bruno, California, it ranks as the second-most-visited website in the world. Creators upload hundreds of hours of new content to YouTube each minute, making it the world's most extensive library of user-generated video, with nearly three billion monthly active users.
https://www.youtube.com/
