You are designing an application to host video files from 50 MB to 12 GB. What is the best storage option to minimize costs and maximize read performance?

Azure Blob Storage is the optimal choice for hosting video files ranging from 50 MB to 12 GB, particularly when the goals are to minimize costs and maximize read performance. This service is specifically designed to handle large amounts of unstructured data, such as videos, images, and audio files.

Blob storage offers several benefits that align with the requirements of video file hosting:

1. Cost-Effectiveness: Azure Blob Storage has various pricing tiers (hot, cool, and archive) that can help manage storage costs effectively based on how frequently the data is accessed. For frequently accessed video files, the hot tier provides a balance of performance and price.

2. Scalability: Blob storage can handle massive amounts of data easily, making it suitable for an application that will host videos, which often require significant storage capacity.

3. Performance: When it comes to read performance, Azure Blob Storage is optimized for large file access. It can handle a high number of concurrent accesses, which is crucial for streaming video content effectively to users.

4. Integration: Blob storage integrates well with various Azure services, which can enhance the application with additional features, such as content delivery through Azure CDN, enhancing performance further when delivering videos to end