FAQs

Yes, we offer a free Centralized Management AddOn to manage multiple Wowza Media Servers from a central point. For more information on this and other free applications visit the AddOns page.

The server can be administered with any Java Management Extension-compatible (JMX) administration console such as JConsole (available with the Java JDK) or the open source MC4J JMX browser free of charge. Wowza software can also be administered from HP OpenView, Tivoli, IBM Websphere, BEA Weblogic and many other management platforms.

Wowza Media Server uses a flexible, standards-based Java Management Extension (JMX) interface that works with a variety of administration consoles and management systems such as the HP OpenView. Please refer to our product documentation for the specific details.

The Wowza Software End User License Agreement (EULA) contains details, terms and conditions governing the use of Wowza software. Wowza Media Server 3 and AddOns are licensed software products which require acceptance of the Wowza EULA. Various restrictions may apply — visit the documentation area on the Media Server page to review the EULA.

A channel is a single inbound source stream received by Wowza Transcoder for transcoding. We simply count the maximum number of source streams going into the Transcoder at any given time. It is important to note that channels are counted concurrently and are not counted as a sum total. The channels are calculated based on the greatest number of concurrent incoming source streams being transcoded at any time during your billing period.

An instance is defined as a single copy of a running Wowza Media Server.

The Free Trial Edition is gives you a chance to test all of the functionality and features free for 30 days.

• Streaming is inherently more secure than progressive download because it only allows a small amount of video memory at any given time. SecureToken, RTMPE, StreamLock™ and other content security methodologies, such as DRM, are offered with Wowza Media Server 3.5 to further enhance content security.
• Streaming is throttled for bandwidth savings on videos that are not watched in their entirety. Savings vary widely depending upon abandonment habits, seek habits, replay and content duration.
• Seek, and moving forward/backward on longer video is greatly enhanced. Optional Wowza nDVR AddOn allows viewers to time-shift live streams with play, pause, rewind and resume features.
• Business models such as pay-per-minute content are easier to implement with streaming.

Yes. Wowza Media Server 3 is a foundation for many unique and exclusive capabilities, including support for premium AddOn components — Wowza Transcoder, Wowza nDVR, and Wowza DRM — to efficiently transform, enhance, and protect content while delivering the best possible viewer experience on any screen. There is also a rich set of APIs that allows you to extend the functionality of the server and AddOns to create customized applications and experiences.

The free Trial Edition provides full, unrestricted functionality of Wowza Media Server 3 and AddOns. It is limited to 30 days of use from the date of issue and the Wowza Transcoder streams contain audio/video watermarks. Other restrictions apply as described in the Wowza Media Software EULA. Download the free 30-day trial.

The product pricing is available on the Pricing page

Wowza Media Server 3, as well as the DVR and DRM AddOns run on any platform that supports the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 6 (a.k.a. 1.6) or later. Installer packages are available for Windows, Red Hat and Debian Linux, Mac OS X, and generic Linux/Unix/Solaris. For best performance, we recommend using a 64-bit OS. You will also need to have Java Runtime Environment (JRE) or Java Development Kit (JDK) installed.

As a minimum we recommend a quad core system with at least 1 GB of RAM per core. To get the most throughput out of Wowza Media Server software we suggest you use RAID 0 or RAID 10 configurations with at least 2 or more disks in the array. Depending upon your application and load, you may need more or less horsepower.

Java downloads are available at www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html

Operation of Wowza Transcoder AddOn requires 64-bit Windows or Linux OS. For use with Intel QuickSync or NVidia CUDA acceleration technologies, 64-bit Windows OS environment is required.

You can utilize industry-standard development tools to accomplish the server-side programming tasks. Wowza offers free Eclipse-based Integrated Development Environment (IDE) which greatly simplifies and streamlines the tasks of extending, configuring and managing the Wowza Media Systems products. The download information for this free development tool can be found on our Wowza IDE page.

Our extensible Java API provides a wide variety of system integration options. Integrations options include: web services, JNI (Java Native Interface), direct Java integration, XML, remote procedure calls and others.

The Wowza Media Server API covers an extensive set of functionality, including a number of unique features that are not available with the FMS. The mapping between the APIs is documented in the Wowza Media Server 3 to FMS API Mapping document found on the documentation page.

Yes. Server-side programming is in Java. Wowza Media Server 3 offers an extensive API to give you maximum flexibility. For more information please refer to the Wowza Media Server API document found on the Documentation page.

No, the Perpetual Edition license may NOT be used by service providers.  You are considered a service provider if you use Wowza software to provide Content Delivery Network (CDN), Hosting or Streaming services or if you allow the content streamed from your Wowza server to be shown on domains or mobile applications other than your own.  Service Providers are required to use either a Monthly or Daily Edition license.

This license is a software license only.  You must use your own hardware and Internet access.  It is valid for use on your own or hosted hardware.  Additionally, Wowza Media Server 3.0.0 or higher and Java 6 or higher are required for use of the Perpetual license.

This license is valid for use on your own or hosted hardware, Amazon Web Services (AWS) EC2 or other cloud servers. Additionally, Wowza Media Server 3.0.0 or higher and Java 6 or higher are required for use of the Monthly license.

This license is valid for use on your own or hosted hardware, Amazon Web Services (AWS) EC2 or other cloud servers. Additionally, Wowza Media Server 3.0.0 or higher and Java 6 or higher are required for use of the Daily license.

Yes, the Daily Edition license may be used by service providers.  You are considered a service provider if you use Wowza software to provide Content Delivery Network (CDN), Hosting or Streaming services or if you allow the content streamed from your Wowza server to be shown on domains or mobile applications other than your own.

Qualified non-profit organizations, including public and nonprofit private educational institutions are eligible for a 20% discount — see Nonprofit Discounts for more information or click here to complete a nonprofit discount request form.

You are considered a service provider if you use Wowza software to provide Content Delivery Network (CDN), Hosting or Streaming services, or if you allow the content streamed from your Wowza server to be shown on domains or mobile applications other than your own.

The recurring fee is billed every month until you cancel the Daily or Monthly Edition license. You must request the cancellation by sending an email to billing@wowza.com. Please make sure to provide your account number in your request.

The invoice for the Daily Edition contains two parts - the $5 recurring fee that covers the first day of use for one server instance during the upcoming month plus the fees for additional server/AddOn instances and Transcoder channels used during the prior month. The first day of use each month is included with the $5 monthly recurring fee. Additional days of use for Server instances and all fees for usage of AddOn instances are billed at the end of the month. All prices are in US$ and do not include sales, VAT or any other applicable taxes. Billing is based on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

You will need to install Wowza Media Server 3 software on your Amazon AWS, EC2 instances using the Wowza Server 3 Monthly or Daily Edition licenses.

See the Amazon EC2 page for details.

Yes, see the Amazon EC2 page for details.

The Perpetual license is a one-time, lifetime license. With the Perpetual Edition you need a separate unique license key for each Server and AddOn instance. Actual instance capacity will depend on your hardware, Internet connection, bandwidth and specific applications. Each Wowza nDVR AddOn license and DRM AddOn license for Perpetual Edition offers unlimited connection capacity per instance.

With the Daily Edition you only need one license key. You install the same key on all machines. Each server instance checks in with a Wowza licensing server and we count how many server and AddOn instances (and Transcoder channels) are running/active at the same time. For detailed information on daily license and billing visit our pricing page.

The invoice for the Monthly Edition contains two parts: the $55 recurring fee which covers the first month of use for one server instance, and fees for additional server/AddOn instances and Transcoder channels used the prior month. Fees for additional server instances and all fees for AddOn instances are billed in arrears on the next month's invoice. We count all instances/channels that use the license for any purpose. All prices are in US$ and do not include sales, VAT or any other applicable taxes.

With the Monthly Edition you only need one license key. You install the same key on all machines. Each server instance checks in with a Wowza licensing server and we count how many server and AddOn instances (and Transcoder channels) are running/active at the same time. For detailed information on monthly license and billing visit our pricing page.

If you configure Wowza Media Server to run as a Windows service or to load on start-up, it may create a second instance. You may be billed for multiple instances with this configuration. For example, if Wowza Server is configured to auto-start after the machine is rebooted, and then you manually start Wowza Server that means you started two instances. One instance is started automatically when the machine reboots, and the second instance is started when you manually start Wowza Server. Please review the User's Guide for information about running Wowza Media Server as a Windows service.

You will be billed monthly for the maximum number of running servers and/or AddOns in active use on each day (GMT) during the billing cycle. To prevent accruing monthly fees for servers or AddOns not being used, make sure to (1) turn the server off, and (2) de-activate the AddOns not in active use. Monthly recurring fee applies even when no servers during the billing cycle were in use.

Simply register for another license. There is no restriction on how many free developer licenses you can receive.

Due to licensing restrictions for transcoder SDK, we are required to limit the lifespan of a license.

Yes, the Developer Edition provides full, unrestricted functionality of Wowza Media Server 3 and AddOns, but is limited to 180 days of use from the date of issue, and is further limited to ten (10) concurrent connections with live streaming restricted to one (1) inbound and nine (9) outgoing streams. The Wowza Transcoder streams contain audio/video watermarks. See our Developer page for more information.

The Perpetual Edition provides full, unrestricted functionality of Wowza Media Server 3, but requires separate license keys for each server. Each AddOn feature is licensed separately. Please visit our pricing page for more information.

These licenses provide full, unrestricted functionality of Wowza Media Server 3 and AddOns, and allow the use of an unlimited number of server instances and AddOns under a single license key. The Monthly and Daily Editions differ only in payment terms.

The free Trial Edition provides full, unrestricted functionality of Wowza Media Server 3 and AddOns. This license is limited to 30 days of use from the date of issue, and the Wowza Transcoder streams contain audio/video watermarks. Download the free trial.

Wowza Media Server 3 Monthly Edition gives you full server functionality, including all future upgrades, without an up-front financial commitment or long-term contract at a price of just $55 or less per server/month. You can scale up or down as you need, and pay only for the server instances and AddOns you're using.  A single license key enables you to take advantage of all server and AddOn functionality, and can be used on an unlimited number of servers.

Yes. Please check our Trade Up Policy for details.

Separate licensing terms are offered for service providers such as Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), hosting and streaming services. These licensing terms include full Wowza Media Server software, flexible license deployment models, comprehensive upgrade policies and the exclusive benefits of the Wowza Streaming Partner program for qualifying service providers. Contact sales@wowza.com for details.

Yes. Wowza Media Server 3 supports re-streaming of MP3 and AAC SHOUTcast/Icecast streams to the all supported player technologies. (At this time the Silverlight Smooth Streaming player is not able to support audio-only streams. One solution is to add a very low bit rate video stream.)

Wowza provides free forum and email support.

Yes. Wowza Media Server 3 can be configured to run multiple virtual host environments. Each of these virtual host environments has its own set of configuration files, application folders and log files. This arrangement enables a single server to serve multiple users in separate environments.

Wowza Media Server 3 supports a wide range of H.264 encoders which use RTMP, RTSP/RTP or MPEG-TS protocols. Encoders can be either unicast of or multicast. For more information on compatible encoders visit Live Streaming And Encoders section on the Wowza forums.

Yes. H.264 video and AAC audio streaming are fully supported..

We are happy to partner with companies that provide complimentary products. If you have a product that interoperates with Wowza Media Server software, please fill out our partnership request form with a detailed description of your product.

You can become an official Wowza Streaming Partner if you provide hosting, streaming or CDN services based on the Wowza Media Server platform. Minimum qualification requirements apply and Streaming Partners receive certain benefits. To find out about the most current Streaming Partner requirements please fill out our partnership request form.

To resell or distribute Wowza Media Server software you need to become a Wowza authorized reseller or authorized distributor. For information on how to become a reseller or distributor, please fill out our partnership request form.

Yes. You can OEM Wowza Media Server software for embedding with your software and hardware products. Please send us a partnership request to find out more details.

Yes. Wowza Media Server software provides a very scalable, HTTP-based approach for providing multiple server delivery of a video on demand content.

Wowza Media Server instances may be configured in an origin and edge architecture to deliver live media content across multiple servers. This functionality is standard.

We have a RTMP Load Testing Tool that allows you to benchmark the performance of Wowza Media Server software in some applications environments. For more information see our Flash RTMP Load Test Tool page.

A lot of Wowza Media Server software performance is driven by the I/O performance of the underlying server. Wowza Media Server software can only go as fast as the server can deliver content bits from the disk. To get the most throughput out of Wowza Media Server 3 we suggest you use RAID 0 or RAID 10 configurations with as many disks as possible in the RAID array. 

Hardware

• CPU: Single Dual Core Xeon 5160, 4MB Cache, 3.00 GHz, 1333MHz FSB
• Memory: 2GB
• Disk IO (streaming disks): 2X 36GB, SAS, 15K RPM Hard Drives, RAID 0 (striping)
• Disk IO (OS disk): 1X 250GB, SATA, 7K RPM Hard Drive
• Network: Dual 1Gb controller

Software

• OS: Fedora Core 6
• JRE: Sun Java6-Update1

Video On Demand Test 1 (600 connections, 400 files)

• Connections: 700
• Files: 400 (random selection of files)
• Video bitrate: 400kbs
• Audio bitrate: 96kbs
• Overall bitrate per file: ~512kbs (with overhead)
• Results: 368Mbs (no connections starved for data)
• Memory Usage: 361MB
• RTMP: CPU: 14.5%
• RTMPE: CPU: 22.6%

Video On Demand Test 2 (1800 connections, 1 file)

• Connections: 1800
• Files: 1
• Video bitrate: 400kbs
• Audio bitrate: 96kbs
• Overall bitrate per file: ~512kbs (with overhead)
• Results: 900Mbs (no connections starved for data)
• Memory Usage: 543MB
• RTMP: CPU: 35%

Live Streaming Test 1 (2000 connections, 512kbps On2 Flix Live stream)

• Connections: 2000
• Live Video: ~512kbps On2 Flix Live stream
• Results: 840Mbs (no connections starved for data)
• Memory Usage: 267MB
• RTMP: CPU: 21%

These tests were performed on hardware with basic recommended tuning.

Some of our customers have been able to get up to 10Gbps of streaming performance for both live and on-demand on multi-threaded, multi-CPU machines that were finely tuned at the kernel level. On standard servers with dual quad-core processors and multiple NICs, up to 5Gbps of streaming performance can be achieved if the server is properly tuned. Tuning guidance is available in our Performance Tuning Guide.

Yes. Wowza Media Server 3 is a highly scalable, tightly coded multi-threaded Java server. The software effectively utilizes CPU (unlimited cores/threads per instance) and memory resources to let you get more connection capacity out of any given hardware. The connection capacity in most cases is limited by the disk I/O or network interface performance.

A channel is a single inbound source stream received by Wowza Transcoder for transcoding. We simply count the maximum number of source streams going into the Transcoder at any given time. It is important to note that channels are counted concurrently and are not counted as a sum total. The channels are calculated based on the greatest number of concurrent incoming source streams being transcoded at any time during your billing period.

Wowza Media Server pricing is designed to be flexible and affordable. 

A separate unique license key is required for each server instance and AddOn instance. Server licenses for Wowza nDVR AddOn, and Wowza DRM AddOn offer unlimited connection capacity per instance. Each Perpetual Wowza Transcoder AddOn license permits a transcode for one (1) incoming channel (stream) to an unlimited number of outbound streams. Multiple Perpetual Transcoder AddOn licenses can be stacked on the same server instance for additional channel capacity.

Yes. All premium AddOns, including Wowza Transcoder, Wowza nDVR, and Wowza DRM are part of the standard Wowza Media Server 3 software installers (Monthly or Daily Edition).

No. With the Wowza Media Server 3 Monthly or Daily Edition you only need one license key. You simply turn AddOns on or off when you want to use them. You will be billed fees for use of the AddOns according to the conditions and pricing schedules on the Pricing page.

Yes. In addition to the Wowza Media Server 3 Perpetual license key, each premium AddOn requires its own license key. For details on pricing, licensing and how to use please see the AddOns page and select the AddOn you are interested in.

• Each Wowza nDVR AddOn license and Wowza DRM AddOn license for Perpetual Edition, offers unlimited connection capacity per instance.
• Each Wowza Transcoder AddOn permits a transcode for one (1) incoming channel (stream) to an unlimited number of outbound streams. Multiple Wowza Transcoder AddOn Perpetual licenses can be stacked on the same server instance for additional channel capacity.

No. The base Wowza Media Server 3 software offers native capability for remapping (i.e.,  transmultiplexing) H.264 content from one incoming transport protocol type (for example RTMP) to a different outgoing transport protocol (for example HLS).  You only need to use Transcoder AddOn if you need to (a) convert a non-H.264 incoming stream to H.264 streams, and/or (b) change the bitrate and/or encoding profile of the incoming stream to different bitrates/prfiles.

Just a single nDVR license is needed for the server where live streams are cached (recorded). This typically means that you only need Wowza nDVR license for the origin servers. Edge servers do not need nDVR licenses.

With Wowza Media Server 3 we offer a variety of premium AddOns that expand your ability to increase revenues, and deliver an exceptional user experience to your customers.  More information on our premium AddOns can be found on our AddOns page.

No. The Wowza AddOns are optional software component for use with Wowza Media Server 3 software. To use Wowza AddOns you need to obtain a valid Wowza Media Server 3 license.

Each Perpetual Wowza Transcoder AddOn license permits a transcode for one (1) incoming channel (stream) to an unlimited number of outbound streams. Multiple Perpetual Transcoder AddOn licenses can be stacked on the same server instance for additional channel capacity.

Yes, multiple Perpetual Transcoder AddOn licenses can be stacked on the same server instance for additional channel capacity.  Total capacity will depend on the hardware you chose, bitrate and complexity of the channel to be transcoded, and the number and bitrates of outbound transcodes (streams) per each channel.

Yes. Wowza Media Server software has been tested by Wowza and used by thousands of licensees in numerous applications using Flash Player 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11.

Wowza Media Server 3 is compatible with the Flash Player, Silverlight Smooth Streaming player, QuickTime player, VLC, native playback on iOS devices, as well as with a variety of native H.264/AAC capable players on 3GPP, set-top boxes, and other devices.

Wowza Media Server 3 supports several variants of RTMP as well as HDS for Flash, Silverlight Smooth Streaming, Apple HLS for iPhone/iPad and other compatible devices, RTSP/RTP for Android, QuickTime and other 3GPP mobile devices, and MPEG-TS for set-top boxes. See specifications for a current list of supported protocols.

Wowza Media Server 3 supports streaming to many types of devices, including PCs, Macs, iPhones/iPads and other devices supporting HLS, Android smart phones/tablets, other 3GPP smartphones/tablets, Internet connected TVs, IPTV/OTT set-top boxes, etc.

A new key is required to use Wowza Media Server 3 or greater. Users will receive an email with their new key automatically. Users will also receive pricing information for the AddOns and step-by-step instructions on how to upgrade.

Perpetual licensees require a key destruction agreement.  Users were sent an email about the availability of Wowza Media Server 3. To upgrade and/or change license editions you need to sign a DocuSign electronic agreement. For more information visit our tradeup page on the website.

Wowza Media Server 3.5 is a free upgrade from 2 through June 30, 2013, however the premiums AddOns are priced separately. Learn more here.

No. Only Wowza Media Server 3.5 keys will work. All existing Wowza Media Server 2 licensees get a free upgrade until June 30, 2013 to Wowza Media Server 3.5. Learn more here.

The full version number can be found in the Wowza directory README.HTML file.

The first five characters of each license key provide a code that identifies the key type and Edition. See these legends below:

• SVRT3 - Wowza Media Server 3 Trial Edition
• SVRD3 - Wowza Media Server 3 Daily Edition
• SVRM3 - Wowza Media Server 3 Monthly Edition
• SVRP3 - Wowza Media Server 3 Perpetual Edition (this is the server key)
      - TRN13 - Wowza Transcoder AddOn
      - DVRA3 - Wowza nDVR AddOn
      - DRMA3 - Wowza DRM AddOn

• SVRB3 - Wowza Media Server 3 Developer Edition
• SVRN3 - Wowza Media Server 3 Special Perpetual Edition (AddOn keys are the same as for the generally marketed licenses)

Please visit the tradeup page of our website for all of the details on trading up.

• It's FREE to upgrade from version 3 to 3.5. All Wowza Media Server 2 licensees are eligible for a free upgrade until June 30, 2013.
• Access our premium AddOns - Wowza Transcoder, Wowza nDVR and Wowza DRM.
• Receive the lower monthly price of $55/instance with Wowza Media Server 3.x Monthly Edition.
• The Daily Edition is only available with Wowza Media Server 3.x
• Future minor releases and bug fixes will be no longer available for Wowza Media Server 2. The only way to receive those is to upgrade.
• Get more bang for your buck - no more CPU core limits means you can get an even higher streaming capacity per server instance.

Yes, you can keep using it but the new developer license includes access to our premium AddOns.  The license does have a time limit of 180 days, as well as the following other restrictions:

• Server limits for On-Demand: up to 10 connections
• Server limits for Live: 1 stream in, up to 9 out
• Transcoder limits: 1 stream in, up to 9 out, audio/video watermark
• nDVR limit of 1 stream in, up to 9 out
• DRM limit for On-Demand: up to 10 connections. Limit for Live: 1 stream in, up to 9 out.
• There is no time limitation on HTTP streams. Streams over any protocol can be delivered up to the stream number limitations of the server.