What does the term "bitrate" signify in digital video?

The term "bitrate" refers specifically to the amount of data that is processed or transmitted per unit of time, typically measured in bits per second (bps). This is crucial in digital video because the bitrate directly influences the quality of the video—higher bitrates generally allow for better quality video, as more data is available to represent the finer details and nuances of the footage.

For instance, a higher bitrate can help preserve visual details during scenes that involve a lot of motion or transitions, ensuring that artifacts such as pixelation or blurriness are minimized. Conversely, a lower bitrate might save space but can degrade the quality of the video, particularly in complex or fast-moving scenes.

In contrast, other options reference different aspects of video production: resolution pertains to the pixel count and clarity of the video, duration deals with how long the video plays, and encoding format describes how the video data is packaged for storage or playback, none of which directly define the concept of bitrate itself.