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What is the difference between streaming video like RealVideo or Windows Media or Quicktime and downloadable video like MPEG and AVI?

April 26, 2017AVI downloadable media MPEG Quicktime streaming video Windows

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What is the difference between streaming video like RealVideo or Windows Media or Quicktime and downloadable video like MPEG and AVI?

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Downloadable video requires the user to wait until a large file is downloaded before playing that video. For a high quality 30 second clip, users may wait for up to an hour since MPEG and AVI are not highly compressed (about 10:1). Streaming video is highly compressed (about 200: 1) and allows the user to begin watching the video immediately when they click on the link. On a low bandwidth connection today the quality will be slightly lower than downloadable, but the total experience is far more satisfying – often making the difference as to whether the video is watched at all.