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Video Playback Engineer Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Roblox

Principal Software Engineer - Video

San Mateo, CA

$153K - $206K/yr

As a Principal Software Engineer on the Video team, you'll be responsible for building, operating, and evolving our video transcoding and playback platform and innovate on new uses for video in a 3D ...

Twitch

Senior iOS Engineer

Irvine, CA · On-site

$148K/yr

... like Video Playback and hybrid mobile strategies. Responsibilities : • Own and drive the ... iOS engineers across multiple product teams and within Mobile Core, including onboarding and ...

Roblox

Principal Software Engineer - Video

San Mateo, CA · On-site

$293K - $343K/yr

As a Principal Software Engineer on the Video team, you'll be responsible for building, operating, and evolving our video transcoding and playback platform and innovate on new uses for video in a 3D ...

Amazon

Senior iOS Engineer, Twitch

San Francisco, CA · Hybrid

$164K/yr

In this role, you will directly contribute to creating and refining core features, such as Video Playback, while architecting strategic solutions for internal developers Twitch is evolving its mobile ...

Amazon

Senior iOS Engineer, Twitch

San Francisco, CA · Hybrid

$164K/yr

In this role, you will directly contribute to creating and refining core features, such as Video Playback, while architecting strategic solutions for internal developers Twitch is evolving its mobile ...

1872 Consulting

iOS Software Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$61 - $84/hr

iOS Software Engineer San Francisco, CA Engineering Ownership Our engineers own what they build ... Experience with video playback (HLS or DASH) * Experience with cross device interoperability (e.g ...

Amazon

Senior iOS Engineer, Twitch

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$164K/yr

In this role, you will directly contribute to creating and refining core features, such as Video Playback, while architecting strategic solutions for internal developers. Twitch is evolving its ...

Twitch

Senior iOS Engineer

Irvine, CA · On-site

$193K - $261K/yr

In this role, you will directly contribute to creating and refining core features, such as Video Playback, while architecting strategic solutions for internal developers. Twitch is evolving its ...

Walmart

Distinguished, Software Engineer

Sunnyvale, CA · On-site

$169K - $338K/yr

We are seeking a Distinguished Software Engineer to define and drive the technical architecture for ... Experience with video playback technologies including HLS/DASH, SSAI, and streaming monetization.

Walmart

Distinguished, Software Engineer

Mountain View, CA · On-site

$169K - $338K/yr

We are seeking a Distinguished Software Engineer to define and drive the technical architecture for ... Experience with video playback technologies including HLS/DASH, SSAI, and streaming monetization.

Walmart

Distinguished, Software Engineer

Milpitas, CA · On-site

$169K - $338K/yr

We are seeking a Distinguished Software Engineer to define and drive the technical architecture for ... Experience with video playback technologies including HLS/DASH, SSAI, and streaming monetization.

Walmart

Distinguished, Software Engineer

San Jose, CA · On-site

$169K - $338K/yr

We are seeking a Distinguished Software Engineer to define and drive the technical architecture for ... Experience with video playback technologies including HLS/DASH, SSAI, and streaming monetization.

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All JobsVideo Playback Engineer JobsVideo Playback Engineer Jobs in California

Video Playback Engineer information

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Video Playback Engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Video Playback Engineer, you need expertise in video codecs, streaming protocols, and a solid background in computer science or a related field. Familiarity with tools such as FFmpeg, HLS/DASH streaming, and media playback libraries, as well as experience with video delivery platforms, is common. Strong problem-solving, attention to detail, and effective communication are critical soft skills for collaborating across engineering and product teams. These skills ensure the reliable, high-quality video experiences users expect and enable efficient troubleshooting and innovation in a rapidly evolving media landscape.

What is a Video Playback Engineer?

A Video Playback Engineer is a technology professional who specializes in the development, optimization, and maintenance of video streaming and playback systems. They work on ensuring seamless delivery of video content across various platforms and devices, addressing issues like buffering, latency, and compatibility. Their responsibilities often include working with video codecs, streaming protocols, content delivery networks (CDNs), and player technologies to provide high-quality viewing experiences. Video Playback Engineers may also collaborate with software developers, QA teams, and content providers to troubleshoot and enhance video performance.

What are some common challenges faced by Video Playback Engineers, and how can applicants prepare to address them?

Video Playback Engineers often encounter challenges related to ensuring smooth streaming across a wide range of devices and network conditions. Applicants should be prepared to troubleshoot compatibility issues, optimize video quality and latency, and implement adaptive bitrate streaming techniques. Staying current with evolving video codecs and industry standards is also crucial. Collaboration with front-end developers, QA teams, and content delivery network providers is common, so strong communication and problem-solving skills are important for success in this role.

What is the difference between Video Playback Engineer vs Video Software Engineer?

AspectVideo Playback EngineerVideo Software Engineer
Required CredentialsBachelor's in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related; experience with multimedia frameworksBachelor's or higher in Computer Science or Software Engineering; programming skills in C++, Python
Work EnvironmentMedia companies, streaming platforms, multimedia device manufacturersSoftware development firms, tech companies, multimedia application developers
Employer & Industry UsageFocus on optimizing video playback, decoding, and renderingDeveloping multimedia software, codecs, and applications

While both roles involve multimedia and video technologies, Video Playback Engineers specialize in ensuring smooth video playback and decoding, often working closely with hardware and media frameworks. Video Software Engineers develop broader multimedia applications and codecs, focusing on software development across various platforms. Understanding these distinctions helps clarify career paths and job expectations in the multimedia industry.

What are popular job titles related to Video Playback Engineer jobs in California? For Video Playback Engineer jobs in California, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Video Playback Engineer jobs in California look for? The top searched job categories for Video Playback Engineer jobs in California are:
What cities in California are hiring for Video Playback Engineer jobs? Cities in California with the most Video Playback Engineer job openings:
Video Playback Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Video Playback Engineer job openings in California as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 66% Full Time, and 34% Part Time. Highlights an 100% In-person job distribution.
Principal Software Engineer - Video

Principal Software Engineer - Video

Roblox

San Mateo, CA

$153K - $206K/yr

Other

Posted 29 days ago

Job description

As a Principal Software Engineer on the Video team, you'll be responsible for building, operating, and evolving our video transcoding and playback platform and innovate on new uses for video in a 3D world. If you enjoy working with C++ and C# or other backend language while building products for the passionate community of Roblox developers and users, you'll be right at home within our experienced team.

This is a hands-on role developing and operating a complex video processing pipeline with bursty traffic and for someone who takes great pride in being able to sleep in on Saturday mornings. 

You Will:
  • Own our unique challenges of playing video in a 3D world while the video display size and CPU/GPU/RAM/network availability are changing.
  • Leverage AI coding tools to make yourself even more efficient and productive.
  • Evolve our video ingest, transcoding, processing, and streaming platform to serve the growing community of creators, working on our backend microservices platform, data pipelines, and the game engine.
  • Employ best programming practices to write code that is efficient, robust, resilient, understandable, observable, and scalable.
  • Play a crucial role improving the quality of video encoding and playback on a wide range of devices, from mobile to high-end platforms.
  • Invent new creative uses for video in a 3D world.
  • Work with teams all over Roblox, both engineering and non-technical, to bring product visions and proof of concepts to life.
  • Be responsible for paying close attention to even the smallest details, driving both easy and hard problems to complete conclusions.
You Have:
  • At least 8+ years of experience developing and deploying video systems
  • Deep experience with adaptive video playback systems and how to craft an encoding ladder for optimal user experience.
  • Knowledge of video quality metrics and how to use them to improve video quality in different scenarios.
  • Successfully deployed a multi-service distributed system at scale with low costs and high availability, and worked with infra and product teams to get the job done.
  • Familiarity with the challenges of working at scale, especially on constrained platforms like consoles and mobile devices
  • Experience in performance optimization, creating data pipelines that process millions of records, creating data visualizations, and alerting on critical telemetry.
  • Proficiency in C++ and C# or another backend language, with an understanding of parallel/concurrent programming concepts.
  • Knowledge within the video domain and you love to pick up new technologies as the landscape evolves.

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