I'm working on a project this summer that involves user-submitted videos. It just seems like there's a barrage of solutions out there and it's difficult to gauge which ones work better than others. What video hosting solutions have you used in the past? Or which ones do you think are best?

I have some programming experience, so I'm capable of working with an API or framework. However, I'd prefer as little hassle as possible. The solution I choose needs to be scalable (so tiered pricing packages or something of the sort). I would prefer both flash and html5 player options, as well as player customization. Users need to have the ability to upload videos that are attached to their accounts, which probably necessitates some sort of upload API. Also, I'm working with a small budget of a couple thousand dollars to start.

That about sums it up. Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!