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| Which Streaming Media Product Is The Best? |
| by Adi Gaskell of Web Video 4 U |
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Adi Gaskell is the founder of Web Video 4 U, one of the UK's leading providers of streaming media software. His aim when founding Web Video 4 U was to provide simple and easy access to Internet video to the masses. In addition to Web Video 4 U he has created an environmental portal that raises money for the Surrey Wildlife Trust and is a moderator on the Open Online Education Network.
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Real Player
The Real Player has always been part of the Netscape Browser, but with Netscape loosing the Browser War, the potential for Real has diminished. The Real Player was one of the first technologies that really enabled streaming video on the web. When the Dot-Com age came to an end, Real quickly started charging money for a Pro-version of their player. They also made it constantly harder to find the free player on their web pages. The latest versions of Real Player have ceased to be free at the point of download, a feature that is certain to hurt the popularity of Real Player amongst users. |
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Windows Media Player
The Windows Media Player has always been big, though its only the latest versions that have successfully been able to stream big video files correctly. Earlier versions had serious problems predicting the actual connection speed and this caused the video to start before the player could play it back without problems. The reason for its reach is obvious. With almost 90% market share for their Operating Systems one would almost expect a similar share of the Media Player Market. The market share for Media Player hasn’t reached such heights however, possible reasons being that Media Player only works on Windows machines and the file is quite a hefty download (over 10Mb at the last count).
Quick Time
QuickTime can do more than just play back video. Apple has positioned the QuickTime Player well, as it can playback 3D objects, VR Panoramas, still images, video and it can even play back Flash-files. In addition, the Pro version of the player can be used for editing and authoring content for the web.
Flash enters the arena
Flash has always been lightweight and good content is the reason that people install the latest version of the Flash Player. With Flash now being able to play back high quality streaming video, this will change video on the web forever.
Installing the Flash Player is easy, especially for people not techie by nature. For those connected to the web with a 56Kb modem it is the only sensible option as other players take an eternity to download. In addition, the install process of other players is way too complicated for many, but clicking the Yes-button to quickly download and install the Flash 6 Player is easy.
The current download rate are more than 3 million players per day and more than 460,000,000 Flash players have been downloaded to date (all versions) At this rate, Flash MX will surpass QuickTime quickly and Macromedia officials claim that over 97% of web users can view Flash content!
Flash as a viewing tool
Flash MX is not only be able to stream video perfectly and easily. It will also open a whole new era of communication on the web. The Communication Server will enable real time presentations and video conferencing, things tried but never really used in the mass market. Video conferencing with MX promises high quality with no setup required. It’s just there and its working, right off the web page. Forget big downloads and software problems, this is easy and seamless.
Just imagine shopping on the web and seeing a button saying 'click here to talk to a customer representative'. After clicking, a video window pops up with a real person there to assist you in buying the goods you want. This can really enhance the online buying experience and boost sales.
Flash MX has only got one compression codec, Sorenson Spark, while the other Media Players have many codecs to choose from. This might seem like a big advantage, but most of these are legacy codecs that are there just to ensure backward compatibility with old video clips. Flash will not need to bother about such. The Spark codec is highly optimized for the web and just as good as the best available (if not better).
Summary
The biggest problem faced by the traditional media players is that they are only updated if a user is desperate to watch a video. Flash based content is far more ubiquitous and the average user is highly likely to have the latest Flash product downloaded in order to play games, watch streaming media, even view standard websites. The fact that Flash is easy to download and free will only ensure that Flash becomes the dominant platform for viewing streaming media on the web. |
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