Streaming platforms scale to accommodate millions of concurrent viewers across diverse devices and network conditions, making efficient adaptive bitrate (ABR) streaming essential. In this blog post, we will explore the technical aspects of transitioning from client-side to server-side ABR, focusing on implementation details and performance optimizations. Adaptive Bitrate Streaming Fundamentals How exactly does adaptive bitrate streaming work? Let’s walk through each step. First, the video content is prepared by encoding it at multiple bitrates (e.g. 500kbps, 1Mbps, 2Mbps, etc.) and storing these different renditions. A manifest file, like an M3U8 for HLS or MPD for DASH, contains information about the different bitrate streams that are available. When a user starts playback, the client device downloads the manifest file to see the available bitrate options. The client selects an initial bitrate, usually starting with a lower bitrate for quicker startup.…