How-To Example Code
AdBrite InVideo API is Broken
If you've been banging your head against a well lately trying to get your hosted videos to work with AdBrite's InVideo API, don't fret. It really is just them that is broken.
After reading their extremely simple How To page, I thought "this will be a cinch", no 5 stage token setup like the EBay API or anything like that - just a simple old fashioned REST call should do it... but no such thing would be happening. From a simple URI request (cutting and pasting the request code into the browser) i receive a success code and a broken piece of Javascript with no Video ID data to speak of - that was phase one of the "Busted API Discovery" mission i was on. The second phase was running it from our server and getting absolutely NOTHING in response.
I read through their FAQ's and help, even submitted a support request, which was not responded to - and my mail server runs no spam filters if thats what you're thinking.
And as usual, such is the status quo with these online FAQ's and Help, they were thoroughly useless for anything remotely technical, so I began to google for a solution, hitting the tech forums. And to my surprise, although now it doesnt seem at all surprising, there were a lot of people asking to PAY people to implement the API code for them, which says a lot for a) their documentation, b) their support and c) their ability to be candid about the foibles of their system.
Finally I came across a forum that described perfectly the issue I was having, and the general consensus on the subject is that their API is currently fubar'd.
Shame about those thousands of videos I wanted to auto-convert.
:) hopefully it will be up again soon.
Posted 11th of December 2007