The company behind Descript, the popular all-in-one video editing, podcasting, screen capture and transcription software platform, have announced that they have joined forces with remote recording specialists SquadCast. The planned integration of the two services will allow users to collaborate remotely on a podcast, with the software capturing and storing high-quality audio and video locally for each user before making it available for editing and production work within Descript.
The company say that they have always been keen to add remote collaboration functionality to Descript, especially with the rise in remote recording during the Coronavirus pandemic, but did not feel that they were in a position to implement a solution that would offer the necessary stability required for such a feature. Neighbouring company SquadCast have been specialising in such technology for seven years, and were one of the first developers to release remote recording tools.
The two have now decided to team up, making it possible for multiple users anywhere in the world to capture their audio and video content whilst recording their podcast, with the resulting files uploaded in Descript as soon as the recording is finished. Many alternative platforms use cloud-based services to capture audio and video, meaning that the maximum possible quality is limited by each user’s internet connection, and any glitches or drop-outs will result in lost audio or video frames.
SquadCast instead captures all of the files locally, so they will be unaffected by any connection issues, and will be available in the highest possible quality — the service supports video capture at resolutions up to 4K, for example. The software also works on mobile devices, making it possible for users to capture content anywhere, and then enhance the audio quality with established Descript features, such as Studio Sound, if necessary.
The integration will be carried out in two phases:
- The first phase, which has already been implemented, will see SquadCast remain as a standalone service, but with enhanced integration with Descript. Paying Descript customers will now also gain SquadCast for free, and vice versa.
- The second phase will see SquadCast’s technology directly merged into Descript, making it possible to carry out remote recording from within a single application.
The companies say they don’t have an exact timeline, but will release more information over the coming weeks.
