Goodbye Flash MX Video?
Apple has filed a lawsuit against Sorenson, a company that has developed and licensed video compression technology for QuickTime, due to the company's involvement with Macromedia, namely the licensing of a video compression codec to Flash MX.
Apple claims the Sorenson / Macromedia deal is a breach of contract, which Sorenson denies - stating that the compression technology used in Flash MX is different from QuickTime.
The suit, if pursued, could be very damaging to Flash MX, for embedded video is one of the most publicized, welcomed additions to the MX upgrade. If Macromedia is forced to remove Sorenson's compression engine, the company will be left without backup, and will be forced to find an alternate, possibly less advanced solution.
But beyond contractual issues, there could be an additional impetus. Once the Flash 6 player becomes more widely distributed, which it most surely will, the delivery of streaming video could put a dent in QuickTime's adoption numbers (along with Windows Media, Real, etc). Right now that doesn't appear to be happening, but that could easily change if Sorenson is allowed to further develop the MX video codec.
As an Apple user, what concerns me the most about the lawsuit isn't Sorenson, but Macromedia. Macromedia's support for the Mac has been sketchy, and quite slow over the past few years, and lawsuits like these will undoubtedly make their interest / support worse. With cushy sponsorships from Intel and a rumored buyout from Microsoft hanging in the air, things could get ugly.
Comments
Howdy Todd... it's hard for me to see the Macromedia Flash Player putting a "dent" in QuickTime's web viewing, because over the years the latter has never even approached majority consumer viewership. Matter of fact, none of the Big 3 media formats even matches Shockwave's consumer viewership: http://www.macromedia.com/software/player_census/shockwaveplayer/tech_breakdown.html
I don't think you need worry about Mac authoring support... that's where Macromedia's customers are. Heck, look at MX support for Adobe imports and external editing since Adobe's previous legal tactics to try to stop people from using Flash... things like lawsuits are distinct from things like trying to satisfy customers.
jd
Posted by: John Dowdell, Macromedia Support at May 1, 2002 11:32 AM
I think after the pitiful performance from Flash browser plugins for Mac there is some cause for concern. Granted the Flash 6 plugin is an improvement, but it's still not as snappy as it should be.
Posted by: Si at May 1, 2002 9:05 PM
