SMPTE Adoption Of WMV9 Hits Some Snags

SysKoll writes "EETimes is running an interesting story about the future of the video codecs for HD DVDs. The Redmond Beast convinced both the Blu-ray Disc Association and the DVD Forum to adopt its WMV9 video codec over MPEG4 for the upcoming VC-1 standard that is mandated for high-definition video devices. That was a huge coup for MS. Now it turns out that Microsoft cheated and lied: its code is not as good as MPEG 4, the WMV9 reference implementation is not available, and the WMV9 test suite does not exercise all the features. The SMPTE might drop WMV9 after all. Apparently, a highly technical standard body is harder to snowjob than the usual clueless consumers."

Comments

Hmm

[__aavhli5779]

What disturbs me is that a 'standards body' would've considered a completely closed, proprietary codec anyway. Patent-encumbered is one thing. Black-box is another. What were they thinking?

Re:Surprising?

[geg81]

Microsoft used shark-style tactics using his monopolistic power to get what it wanted and crush opposition... film at 11. Is this even news?

No, that's not news. What's news is that an important industry standards body noticed in time and is trying to prevent it.

Microsoft overpromised it seems, at least on the feature set. But cheated and lied?

I think if you "overpromise" in order to gain business advantages worth billions of dollars, that counts as "cheated and lied". In fact, it might count as "fraud".

Maybe we have gotten a little too jaded in this industry, but this kind of behavior should not be acceptable.

Microsoft vs. Apple: Two Warring Views of Media

[Nova Express]

This is rather emblamatic of the differences between the way Apple and Microsoft approach any technical problem.

Apple asks: "How can we make the best product possible for the customer and still make money at it?"

Microsoft asks: "How can we use this to reinforce our monopoly and still get end-users to swallow it?"

All Microsoft's DRM and Codec schemes have seemed to design to "embrace and extend" to further their Windows monopoly. Apple's have been designed to be the best they possibly can, with just enough DRM to satisfy their media partners. It's a big difference, and it shows up in everything they do.