NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] Adobe, Apple, Flash, iPad, iPhone, HTML5, Lions and Tigers and Bears: Oh My!
First, some simplified backstory. Love it or hate it, we all know
that Adobe Flash has become the de facto standard for streaming Web
video -- that is, it's now by far the most common mechanism for
delivery of streaming (and "steaming") video on YouTube, news sites,
and most everywhere else.
Without getting into the convoluted details of licensing, containers,
and codecs, the bottom line is that Adobe effectively controls Flash,
and reported disputes between Adobe and Apple have contributed to
keeping Flash off the iPhone, and now, the iPad. During the big iPad
unveiling a few days ago, many observers noted Web page "missing
plugin" holes where Flash content would otherwise have appeared.
(Note, released Android systems don't have full, recent Flash players
either yet, but this functionality was demonstrated many months ago,
and Flash for at least some Android versions reportedly will be
appearing very soon.)
Back to Adobe vs. Apple. Apparently in an attempt to pressure Apple
on this score, Adobe has now published a montage demonstrating what
the absence of Flash means on various pages. What attracted
particular attention and raised eyebrows was that one of Adobe's
examples was of a hardcore porn site ("Bang Brothers"):
Here's the montage:
http://bit.ly/aE63TC (Wired)
With rapid adoption of HTML5, it may be possible to move Web video out
from under Adobe's control by replacing Flash entirely. YouTube and
Vimeo have just started beta testing HTML5 video players.
However, there's another issue. Right now those tests (as far as I
know) are using HTML5 as a container for H.264 encoded video. H.264
itself (actually now part of the MPEG-4 standard) is itself encumbered
by various licensing issues.
To get fully out from under this licensing mess, one possibility would
be to use HTML5 with an open codec such as Ogg Theora. Whether or not
Ogg Theora in its current state of development is efficient enough to
be used by high volume video sites like YouTube is currently a matter
of some dispute.
--Lauren--
NNSquad Moderator