Reprinted from a Sorenson press release:
Sorenson Media today announced Sorenson Squeeze 4 – a new line of video compression applications for digital video professionals and enthusiasts. The new Sorenson Squeeze 4 product family includes the Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite, Sorenson Squeeze 4 for Macromedia Flash MX, and Sorenson Squeeze 4 for MPEG-4 – all of which are available in Windows and Macintosh versions.
Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite is the first full-featured compression application to incorporate High Definition (HD) encoding for a variety of video formats including MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, QuickTime, and RealMedia. Additionally, the Windows version of the Suite includes HD encoding options for Windows Media 9. Sorenson Media has added the Sorenson AVC Pro codec (also known as H.264) to the Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite and Sorenson Squeeze 4 for MPEG-4. This codec offers unparalleled encoding efficiency by creating the highest-quality video at roughly 70 percent the data rate of MPEG-4. All versions of Sorenson Squeeze 4 incorporate a completely redesigned interface including a fully customizable batch window that allows settings to be applied at the job, source, and output levels and many more time-saving enhancements.
“Sorenson Media is pleased to offer more HD encoding options than any other tool and to be the first encoding application on the market to incorporate H.264 and HD H.264 formats that will play an important role in the future of media distribution” said Matt Cupal, vice president of strategy and business development at Sorenson Media. “Professional users will also be pleased by our dramatically improved batch encoding. We’ve worked hard to make the workflow much more powerful while still maintaining our renowned simplicity.”
Increasing overall usability and workflow efficiency, the new Squeeze 4 interface features a customizable interface allowing the user to arrange the video preview pane anywhere on the screen in either single or multi-monitor workstations. The three new versions of Sorenson Squeeze 4 feature a new video zoom tool for pixel perfect cropping, a preview slider with in/out markers allowing a segment of video to be previewed before compression, and shortcut keys that supply quick access to common compression functions. Also included among the enhancements is a new, batch-processing feature that allows producers to apply many presets and filters at the same time to multiple video files.
“Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite automates many of the repetitive encoding tasks we have in creating digital content for the Web, content reviews, and DVD publication,” said Christian J. Kennel, post production supervisor/senior producer at Studio AOL in Los Angeles, Calif. “The new batch window lets us make job level settings that affect all our source material or we can adjust each output on an individual basis. We can even change the job priority of a particular file or add files without stopping the batch encode. With Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite we save a lot of time and we always end up with great-looking video.”
Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite specializes in compressing digital video for archiving and sharing video on CD, DVD, or over the Internet. As part of the authoring and publication process, users import edited, uncompressed video from popular video editing tools such as Avid Xpress DV, Apple Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere. Once imported into Sorenson Squeeze Compression Suite, users simply select a preset for an intended audience and then click the “Squeeze It” button.
Pricing and Availability
The Sorenson Squeeze 4 product line is expected to ship in the third calendar quarter of 2004. Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite (Windows or Macintosh) is available for US $449. Sorenson Squeeze 4 for Macromedia Flash MX (Windows or Macintosh) is available for US $119. Sorenson Squeeze 4 for MPEG-4 (Windows or Macintosh) is available for US $199. Upgrade pricing is also available for current users of Sorenson Media products. For more information about purchasing a Sorenson Squeeze 4 product, or to find a reseller, call 1.888.767.3676 or visit www.sorenson.com.
