Transcoder API

Name: Transcoder API API
Brand: Transcoder API
Availability: InStock

✓ Official Vendor SpecMediaVideo Processingoauth26 EndpointsREST

For Agents

Submit and monitor video transcoding jobs that convert source files into adaptive streaming formats (HLS, DASH) and downloadable outputs across multiple bitrates.

Quickstart

Get started with Transcoder API in minutes using your preferred integration method.

# Add to your MCP client config (Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf)
{
  "jentic": {
    "url": "https://api.jentic.com/mcp",
    "auth": "oauth"
  }
}

# Then ask your agent:
"transcode a video to HLS"

# → Jentic returns the GET /events tool with parameter schema, agent executes.

Capabilities

What an agent can do with Transcoder API API.

Submit transcoding jobs that produce HLS, DASH, MP4, and WebM output

Author and reuse job templates encoding ladder settings

Generate adaptive bitrate variants with H.264, H.265, VP9, and AV1 codecs

Mux multiple audio tracks and produce sprite sheets for scrubbing previews

Insert ad-break markers and image overlays into transcoded output

GET STARTED

Start building with Transcoder API API

Explore with Jentic

View OpenAPI Document

Use Cases

Patterns agents use Transcoder API API for, with concrete tasks.

★ On-Demand Streaming Pipeline

Video platforms ingest user uploads to Cloud Storage and submit a Transcoder job per upload that produces an HLS package with five renditions (240p through 1080p), AAC audio, and a sprite sheet for the scrubbing preview. Output is written to a CDN-fronted bucket. Most short-form videos finish in a few minutes; the API's job-template feature keeps the encoding ladder consistent across millions of submissions.

POST /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobs with inputUri set to the GCS upload, outputUri to the streaming bucket, and templateId pointing at a preset HLS ladder.

Reusable Encoding Job Templates

Media engineering teams encode their standard ladder definitions once as a JobTemplate and reference it across every workflow. Updating the template propagates new codec choices (e.g. switching H.264 to AV1 for the top rendition) to every downstream job without touching individual job submissions. The template list endpoint is the source of truth for available presets.

POST /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobTemplates with a config defining elementaryStreams, muxStreams, manifests, and pubsubDestination.

Ad-Insertion-Ready Output for Streaming Ads

Streaming services preparing inventory for SSAI insert ad-break markers in the manifest at the encoding stage. The Transcoder API supports ad-break configuration on the job, producing manifests with EXT-X-CUE-OUT (HLS) and SCTE-35 markers (DASH) ready for downstream ad servers. This avoids a separate post-processing step and keeps marker timing precise.

Include adBreaks with startTimeOffset values in the job config when posting to /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobs.

Agent-Managed Video Pipelines via Jentic

An AI agent receives a 'prepare this video for the website' task and submits a Transcoder job through Jentic, watches it via Pub/Sub or polling, and reports the manifest URI back to the requester. Jentic isolates the credential and exposes job submit, get, and list as discrete tool calls.

Through Jentic, search 'transcode video to hls', load POST /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobs, execute it with input/output URIs, then poll until state is SUCCEEDED.

Key Endpoints

6 endpoints — transcoder api converts source video files into streaming-ready and downloadable formats including hls, dash, mp4, and webm, applying multiple bitrates, codecs, and resolutions in a single job.

METHOD

PATH

DESCRIPTION

POST

/v1/{+parent}/jobs

Submit a transcoding job

GET

/v1/{+parent}/jobs

List jobs in a project and location

POST

/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates

Create a reusable job template

GET

/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates

List job templates in a project and location

POST

/v1/{+parent}/jobs

Submit a transcoding job

GET

/v1/{+parent}/jobs

List jobs in a project and location

POST

/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates

Create a reusable job template

GET

/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates

List job templates in a project and location

Why though Jentic?

Three things that make agents converge on Jentic-routed access.

Credential isolation

Service-account JSON is stored encrypted in the Jentic vault. Agents submit jobs through Jentic and never hold raw OAuth tokens.

Intent-based discovery

Agents search 'transcode video to hls' or 'create transcoder job template' and Jentic returns the matching v1 operation with the full job and template config schema.

Time to first call

Direct Transcoder integration: 2-4 days for credential setup, ladder authoring, and Pub/Sub wiring. Through Jentic: under 1 hour.

Related APIs

Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.

Complementary

Google Cloud Storage API

Holds the source files and the transcoded outputs that Transcoder reads and writes

Always paired — upload source video to Cloud Storage, then point Transcoder at the GCS URI.

Complementary

Cloud Video Intelligence API

Analyse video content (labels, shot detection, object tracking) before or after transcoding

Run Video Intelligence to extract metadata; run Transcoder to produce streaming-ready output.

Complementary

Google Cloud Pub/Sub API

Receive job-completion notifications from Transcoder via pubsubDestination

Configure pubsubDestination on the job and consume the topic via Pub/Sub instead of polling.

FAQs

Specific to using Transcoder API API through Jentic.

What authentication does the Transcoder API use?

OAuth 2.0 with the cloud-platform scope is required. Production workflows use service-account credentials with the transcoder.admin role on the project. Through Jentic, the service-account JSON is stored encrypted in the vault and short-lived tokens are minted per call.

Can I produce HLS and DASH from the same source with the Transcoder API?

Yes. A single job config can declare multiple manifests in the manifests block — one with type=HLS and one with type=DASH — referencing shared elementaryStreams and muxStreams. The job writes both manifest sets to the output URI in one execution rather than submitting two jobs.

What are the rate limits for the Transcoder API?

Job submission throughput is governed by per-project quota that varies by region; defaults allow tens of concurrent jobs. Long-running jobs do not block subsequent submissions — they queue. Quota increases for high-volume publishers are available through the Cloud Console.

How do I submit a transcoding job through Jentic?

Search Jentic for 'transcode video to hls', load POST /v1/{parent}/jobs, and execute it with parent=projects/PROJECT/locations/LOCATION, inputUri (GCS source), outputUri (GCS destination), and either templateId or an inline config. Jentic returns the job name; poll GET on it until state is SUCCEEDED. Get started at https://app.jentic.com/sign-up.

Does the Transcoder API support AV1 and HEVC?

Yes. The codec field on each H264/H265/Vp9/Av1 elementary stream entry selects the encoder; AV1 and HEVC (H.265) are supported alongside H.264 and VP9. Choose AV1 for storage savings on long-form catalog content and H.264 for broadest device compatibility.

Is the Transcoder API free?

Pricing is per-input-minute by codec and resolution tier — H.264 SD is the cheapest, with progressively higher rates for HD, UHD, HEVC, and AV1 outputs. The first ten minutes per month are free. Manifest generation and storage of outputs in Cloud Storage are billed separately at standard rates.