HD streaming available next year!
I read about this at Streamingmedia.com today. It seems Microsoft and Akamai are collaborating to make HD streaming widely available as early as 2009.
Apparently the two companies announced yesterday that
Microsoft’s new “Smooth Streaming” technology will be bundled with a new Akamai service offering called “AdaptiveEdge Streaming for Microsoft Silverlight.”
But forget about how it works… as if i would ever understand anyway… think about what this could mean. Will Richmond of VideoNuze hits the nail on the head;
“Users expect TV-quality video when they go online; anything less just doesn’t make the grade anymore.” Especially in the HD era, premium video providers are recognizing that quality is king and as a result are accelerating their shift to more robust delivery infrastructure. And the payoffs are clear: higher-quality video drives longer viewing sessions, greater engagement and improved monetization opportunities.”
Check out the demonstration for yourself here http://www.smoothhd.com/
Tags: Akamai, HD Video streaming, Microsoft, Silverlight