Free online VIV to MKV converter

What the VIV format is

VIV usually refers to VivoActive video, a proprietary streaming format created by Vivo Software and used for web video in the late 1990s and early 2000s. You may encounter it in old downloaded clips, software archives, or websites that used VivoActive Player. The extension is not a universal specification, so a VIV file from another application may require a different decoder.

What the MKV format is

MKV is the filename extension for a Matroska container. It can hold video, multiple audio tracks, subtitles, chapters, and metadata in one file, and commonly stores H.264 or H.265 video with AAC, Opus, or other audio codecs. MKV is useful for archival copies and files containing several tracks, but some televisions and editing applications support MP4 more reliably.

How to convert VIV to MKV

You can convert the file for free on 101convert.com without installing software. Upload the VIV file, select MKV as the output format, start the conversion, and download the resulting file. This method is appropriate when the service can decode that particular VIV variant.

For local conversion, use a current build of FFmpeg:

ffmpeg -i input.viv -map 0 -c copy output.mkv

This first attempts a stream copy, which changes the container without reducing quality. Check the input before conversion with:

ffprobe input.viv

If FFmpeg identifies a legacy Vivo codec but cannot copy it into a compatible MKV file, re-encode the video and audio:

ffmpeg -i input.viv -map 0:v:0 -map 0:a? -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -preset medium -c:a aac -b:a 160k output.mkv

Use a lower CRF value for higher quality and a higher value for a smaller file. If FFmpeg reports that the format or codec is unknown, install the latest FFmpeg build and verify that the file is actually a VivoActive video; a VIV file produced by another program may need its original application or decoder.

Quality and compatibility limitations

Stream copying preserves the original compressed data, but it works only when FFmpeg can read the VIV streams and the selected MKV-compatible codecs. Re-encoding is required for unsupported legacy codecs and introduces generation loss. Very old VIV files may contain damaged headers or proprietary audio, so successful playback in an old VivoActive player does not guarantee successful conversion. Test the MKV in the intended player and retain the original VIV as a backup.