name: VideoSDK FinOps Framework
description: FinOps Framework 1.0 FOCUS-aligned cost management reference for VideoSDK
  real-time communication API consumption, covering cost allocation, optimization,
  and forecasting for participant-minute-based billing.
version: '1.0'
provider: VideoSDK
providerUrl: https://www.videosdk.live
pricingUrl: https://www.videosdk.live/pricing
billingDocsUrl: https://docs.videosdk.live/help_docs/pricing-audio-video

costModel:
  type: usage-based
  description: VideoSDK charges per participant-minute. A participant-minute is one
    participant connected to one session for one minute. Costs are determined by the
    number of participants and the video resolution used.
  billingUnit: participant-minute
  billingFormula: "Total Cost = Sum of (N participants × M minutes × rate per resolution)"
  freeAllowance:
    amount: 10000
    unit: participant-minutes
    period: monthly
    resetCycle: monthly

costCategories:
  - name: Audio Communication
    description: Costs for audio-only participant connections.
    rate: 0.0006
    unit: per participant-minute
    currency: USD
  - name: HD Video Communication
    description: Costs for video participant connections at HD (720p) resolution.
    rate: 0.003
    unit: per participant-minute
    currency: USD
  - name: Full HD Video Communication
    description: Costs for video participant connections at Full HD (1080p) resolution.
    rate: 0.007
    unit: per participant-minute
    currency: USD
  - name: 2K / 2K+ Video Communication
    description: Costs for video participant connections at 2K or higher resolution.
    rate: 0.007
    unit: per participant-minute
    currency: USD
  - name: Recording Add-On
    description: Additional cost for meeting or participant recording services.
    rateMin: 0.004
    rateMax: 0.030
    unit: per minute
    currency: USD
  - name: Transcription Add-On
    description: Additional cost for real-time or post-session transcription services.
    rateMin: 0.004
    rateMax: 0.030
    unit: per minute
    currency: USD
  - name: AI Summary Add-On
    description: Additional cost for AI-powered meeting summaries.
    rateMin: 0.004
    rateMax: 0.030
    unit: per minute
    currency: USD

costOptimization:
  - name: Downgrade Video Resolution
    description: Use the lowest acceptable video resolution (Audio or HD) to reduce
      per-minute costs. Audio-only is 5x cheaper than HD video.
    potentialSavings: high
  - name: Minimize Idle Participants
    description: Ensure participants disconnect promptly when not active. Each connected
      participant accrues costs regardless of activity.
    potentialSavings: medium
  - name: Leverage Free Tier
    description: Fully utilize the 10,000 free participant-minutes each month before
      incurring paid usage. Design development and testing workflows to stay within
      the free tier.
    potentialSavings: high
  - name: Use Add-On Credits Strategically
    description: The 300 free add-on credits per month cover recording, transcription,
      and AI summaries. Schedule these services during the free credit window to reduce
      paid usage.
    potentialSavings: low
  - name: Volume Discounts
    description: Contact VideoSDK for volume discounts at 100,000+ monthly participant-minutes
      to reduce per-minute rates on Pay-As-You-Go.
    potentialSavings: medium
    threshold: 100000
    thresholdUnit: participant-minutes per month

costAllocation:
  dimensions:
    - name: Session / Room
      description: Allocate costs by room ID to track which sessions or products drive
        the most participant-minute consumption.
    - name: Video Resolution
      description: Segment costs by resolution tier (Audio, HD, Full HD, 2K) to understand
        quality-vs-cost tradeoffs.
    - name: Feature Type
      description: Separate core communication costs from add-on costs (recording,
        transcription, AI summary).
    - name: Application Environment
      description: Tag rooms by environment (development, staging, production) to prevent
        development usage from inflating production cost metrics.

forecasting:
  method: participant-minute projection
  inputs:
    - expectedDailyActiveSessions: number
    - averageParticipantsPerSession: number
    - averageSessionDurationMinutes: number
    - targetVideoResolution: Audio | HD | FullHD | 2K
    - recordingEnabled: boolean
  formula: "Monthly Cost = (sessions/day × avg_participants × avg_duration_min × 30 days) × resolution_rate"
  exampleScenarios:
    - name: Small Team (10 participants, 60 min/day, HD)
      monthlyParticipantMinutes: 18000
      estimatedMonthlyCost: 24.00
      currency: USD
      notes: "18,000 min × $0.003/min = $54; minus 10,000 free min = 8,000 billable min × $0.003 = $24"
    - name: Mid-Scale (100 participants, 30 min/session, 5 sessions/day, HD)
      monthlyParticipantMinutes: 450000
      estimatedMonthlyCost: 1320.00
      currency: USD
      notes: "450,000 min × $0.003/min = $1,350; minus $30 free allowance value"

dashboardUrl: https://app.videosdk.live
contactForBilling: support@videosdk.live