Will Google Oppose DRM On HTML5 Video? 399
An anonymous reader let us know that "Mozilla has committed to not implement DRM in Firefox for WebM HTML5 video even though it is theoretically possible. Microsoft has asked Google and the WebM community several other questions that still have not been answered, but this one seems more important: will Google commit to keeping WebM in Chrome DRM-free? Does our community think that is important for the open web and free software?"
H.264 (Score:3, Interesting)
Why are we leaving the decision up to Chrome? iOS devices are a giant chunk of the mobile market and play H.264 fine, and so do Android devices and Palm's WebOS. I'm not sure about Blackberry, but it's odd that Windows Mobile doesn't support H.264 given Microsoft's support of it. Also sites like YouTube's Mobile site are using H.264.
In light of all this, why is WebM such a big deal? Are there any vendors (aside from Google) that have products out using it (or using only it)?
Re:H.264 (Score:5, Interesting)
WinAmp is open source now? Did I miss that new item on /.?
How to VLC, MediaPlayerClassic, etc. do it? They simply accept the possible patent lawsuits. There isn't anything to get from those components, because there is no company behind it with a lot of money.
Re:Hmm... (Score:3, Interesting)
>>>NO business in their right mind would agree
I've read plenty of stories about artists and businesses that DO give away their content for free. i.e. Not copy-protected. They discovered that doing so earned them MORE money, not less, in the form of more sales.
This is kinda similar to how lowering taxes can actually create More government revenue in the long term. It's counter-intuitive but study-after-study has shown that giving stuff away creates awareness, and that awareness creates sales.
Re:DRM in the streaming age keeps honest users hon (Score:4, Interesting)
I'm not sure about Netflix, but the DRM that Hulu and BBC's iPlayer use, RTMPE, was broken a long time ago. However, while it's possible to find programs for saving the streams from these services, but there don't seem to be widely distributed, user friendly programs to do so. I don't see why the situation would necessarily be any different if there were no DRM at all. People seem sufficiently happy with the service Hulu and iPlayer provide that they're not going to the trouble of downloading software to get round the services terms and conditions.