This topic describes how to choose and purchase the most suitable ApsaraVideo VOD resource plans based on your service and business needs.
Purchase guide
ApsaraVideo VOD provides various resource plans, including ApsaraVideo VOD data transfer plans, ApsaraVideo VOD storage plans, ApsaraVideo VOD transcoding plans. You can choose the most suitable resource plan based on your service needs, business volume, and region.
To purchase resource plans, go to the buy page.
For a description of the billable items for resource plans, see VOD Pricing Details.
Before you purchase a resource plan, make sure that you understand its scope and deduction rules. For more information, see Resource plans.
If you purchase multiple resource plans, they are deducted in a specific order and according to specific rules. For more information, see Deduction rules for resource plans.
When you purchase an ApsaraVideo VOD data transfer plan, select the pay-by-data-transfer billing method. If you are not using this method, you need to switch your billing method. For more information, see Switch between billing methods.
Purchase steps
Go to the ApsaraVideo VOD resource plan buy page and select a resource plan based on your business needs.
Purchase Examples
Scenario
Assume that John wants to build a small video news website for mobile devices. He needs to store video content and accelerate content delivery. To ensure a good viewing experience on mobile devices, he plans to provide users with 720p high definition (HD) videos. His users are located in the Chinese mainland.
Resource consumption:
Resource
Business volume
Video storage
About 1,000 videos are stored, occupying nearly 1 TB of storage space. An estimated 100 new videos are added each month, requiring about 100 GB of new storage.
Access acceleration
Daily peak bandwidth: about 1 Gbps. Downstream data transfer: 0.2 TB/day, 2.4 TB/month, 5 TB/half-year, and 11 TB/year.
Video transcoding
General transcoding for H.264, LD (640 × 480) videos. Existing videos: 1,000 × 30 minutes = 30,000 minutes. Incremental videos (monthly): 100 × 30 minutes = 3,000 minutes.
NoteThe required plan specifications vary based on the encoding format and resolution of the output videos. Calculate the required plan specifications based on the deduction ratio of the transcoding plan.
For example, to perform general transcoding on 30,000 minutes of existing videos into H.264, SD (1280 × 720) format, you must purchase a resource plan of 30,000 × 1.5 = 45,000 minutes. For more information, see ApsaraVideo VOD transcoding plans.
Region: The Chinese mainland
Determine the resource plan type.
Resource
Billable item
Resource plan type
Video storage
Media asset storage
ApsaraVideo VOD storage plan
Access acceleration
Acceleration service
ApsaraVideo VOD data transfer plan (available for the pay-by-data-transfer billing method)
Video transcoding
Media asset transcoding
ApsaraVideo VOD transcoding plan
Select the resource plan specifications.
NoteThe following tables list several common combinations of resource plan specifications. You can purchase a combination of resource plans based on your needs.
ApsaraVideo VOD storage plan
Validity period
Pros and cons
One 1 TB plan + One 100 GB plan
1 year
You need to purchase a new 100 GB storage plan every month, which is too frequent.
One 1 TB plan + One 500 GB plan
1 year
You need to purchase a 500 GB storage plan every five months.
2 × 1 TB
1 year
You purchase only once a year, but the large amount of remaining space may be wasted.
ApsaraVideo VOD data transfer plan
Validity period
Pros and cons
3 × 1 TB
1 year
You need to purchase a new plan every month, which is too frequent.
1 × 5 TB
1 year
You purchase once every six months. The discount is larger.
One 10 TB plan + One 1 TB plan
1 year
Purchase a yearly subscription for a greater discount.
ApsaraVideo VOD transcoding plan
Validity period
Pros and cons
One 20,000-minute plan + Three 5,000-minute plans
1 year
You need to purchase a new 20,000-minute transcoding plan every month, which is too frequent. In addition, the newly purchased plan may not be fully used within the month, resulting in waste.
Two 20,000-minute plans + Two 5,000-minute plans
1 year
You purchase once every six months. The discount is larger.
One 100,000-minute plan
1 year
Purchase an annual subscription for a greater discount.
Recommended resource plan
Resource plan
Specifications
Validity period
ApsaraVideo VOD storage plan
One 1 TB plan + One 500 GB plan
1 year
ApsaraVideo VOD data transfer plan
One 10 TB plan + One 1 TB plan
1 year
ApsaraVideo VOD transcoding plan
One 100,000-minute plan
1 year