This topic introduces the billing of MediaLive.
Billable items
MediaLive charges fees for idle resources, transcoding, and outbound traffic on a daily basis.
Each day's bill is generated within one hour after midnight the following day, and fees are automatically deducted from your account.
Idle resource fees
Incurred when the following MediaLive resources are created but not in use:
PUSH-type inputs that are not associated with a channel
PUSH-type inputs that are associated with a channel not in the running state
Channels not in the running state
You are charged based on the duration for which the resources remain idle, measured in minutes. Fractions of minutes are rounded up to the next minute.
NoteRegularly delete idle inputs and channels to avoid unnecessary costs.
Transcoding fees
You are charged when the audio and video streams are transcoded for outputs. The pricing depends on a combination of dimensions, including codec and resolution.
NoteThe transcoding resolution is determined by the width and height of the output video. For example:
If the long edge ≤ 1,280 pixels and the short edge ≤ 720 pixels, the resolution for billing is SD (1280 × 720).
If the long edge > 1,280 pixels or the short edge > 720 pixels, the resolution for billing is higher than SD.
You are charged based on the total duration of transcoding tasks, measured in minutes. Fractions of minutes are rounded up to the next minute.
ImportantWhen a MediaLive channel is running, but the inputs are not receiving content and outputs are not producing content, you are charged based on the pricing of video-only transcoding.
Outbound traffic fees
Incurred when data is transferred from MediaLive to third-party platforms. You are charged based on the region and traffic volume, with tiered pricing.
Pricing of idle resources
Other regions include China (Shanghai), China (Beijing), China (Shenzhen), China (Hangzhou), Singapore, Germany, and US (Silicon Valley).
Item | UAE (Dubai) | Other | Unit |
Idle resources | 0.012 | 0.01 | USD per hour |
Pricing of transcoding
Unit: USD per hour
Type | Codec | Resolution | Singapore | Germany | US (Silicon Valley) | UAE (Dubai) |
Audio | - | - | 0.221 | 0.198 | 0.198 | 0.265 |
Video | H.264 | 480P（LD） | 0.180 | 0.165 | 0.165 | 0.216 |
720P（SD） | 0.360 | 0.330 | 0.33 | 0.432 | ||
1080P（HD） | 0.713 | 0.653 | 0.653 | 0.855 | ||
2K | 1.426 | 1.307 | 1.307 | 1.711 | ||
4K（UHD） | 2.851 | 2.614 | 2.614 | 3.421 | ||
H.265 | 480P（LD） | 0.900 | 0.825 | 0.825 | 1.08 | |
720P（SD） | 1.800 | 1.650 | 1.65 | 2.16 | ||
1080P（HD） | 3.564 | 3.267 | 3.267 | 4.277 | ||
2K | 7.128 | 6.534 | 6.534 | 8.554 | ||
4K | 14.256 | 13.068 | 13.068 | 17.107 |
Pricing of outbound traffic
Daily traffic (Billing unit: USD per GB) | Singapore | Germany | US (Silicon Valley) | UAE (Dubai) |
0 to 300 GB (inclusive) | 0.120 | 0.089 | 0.089 | 0.144 |
300 GB to 1.5 TB (inclusive) | 0.084 | 0.078 | 0.078 | 0.102 |
1.5 TB to 5 TB (inclusive) | 0.078 | 0.072 | 0.072 | 0.0984 |
More than 5 TB | 0.066 | 0.048 | 0.048 | 0.096 |
Billing examples
On March 1, you used MediaLive for live streaming. The input was transcoded to an SD (720P) video in H.265 codec. The transcoding duration was 10 hours, and 100 GB of outbound traffic was generated in the Singapore region.
On March 2, a bill with the following fees was generated:
100 GB × USD 0.12 per GB + 10 hours × USD 1.8 per hour = USD 30
On March 1, you used MediaLive for live streaming. The input was transcoded to an SD (720P) video in H.264 codec. The transcoding duration was 50 hours, and 500 GB of outbound traffic was generated in the Singapore region.
On March 2, a bill with the following fees was generated:
500 GB × USD 0.084 per GB + 50 hours × USD 0.36 per hour = USD 60