Micmac around the HTML 5 and the video tag. Mozilla does not pay for Firefox can decode H.264 and hoped that free sizes have their card to play in this little video revolution online...

At the platform where online video is to gradually bring the tag of HTML 5 Mike Shaver of Mozilla in fact know all the commitment of the foundation to open formats. Indeed, while the HTML 5 will allow players of online video to deprive owners of plugins licensed (read: Adobe Flash), not all agree on new standards to adopt, which is slowing the deployment of these new technologies.

Moreover, we must understand that bear the HTML 5 and its tag is not sufficient to direct a browser displays a video. It is indeed also the browser in question knows decode the video format provided by the websites. Hence the need for the development of certain standards.

A bag of knots

Currently, the main platforms for online video (YouTube, Vimeo) have chosen to submit their videos to H.264. A choice that sorry Mike Shaver, as he wrote on his blog: "Youtube and Vimeo think that based on proprietary plugins for video is a problem. Mozilla think having confidence in patented formats is a problem." Mozilla therefore reiterates its commitment to open formats like Ogg Theora, recalling that in order for Firefox to decode H.264, Mozilla should pay a license to MPEG-LA, which amounts to 5 million dollars a year. It is therefore a simple transfer of the problem, YouTube would have to pay Flash, but the browser vendors should pay for the formats chosen by the broadcasters of video.

Other crux of the problem, Apple (Safari) and Microsoft (Internet Explorer) is related to the H.264 patent, they can use without paying license. For its part, Google pays for that Chrome can decode the video broadcast in this format. Because of these differences that the W3C has not decided on a common format around the audio and video at clarifying the specifications of HTML 5. Hopefully all these players will eventually agree...