AFI BLOG: Media and Technology

The Los Angeles Times

Microsoft has an uphill climb with Silverlight, the browser plug-in technology it’s developing to compete with Adobe’s ubiquitous Flash technology. To boost its chances, it’s taking a distinctly un-Microsoftian tack: it’s designing the technology to work on software platforms and devices outside the Windows universe. And in that vein, it’s working with Widevine to supply a non-Windows DRM for content delivered via Silverlight.

Ponder that one for a moment. “This is the first time Microsoft has partnered (with), endorsed and utilized a third-party DRM technology for their video format,” Widevine CEO Brian Baker said in an interview. Microsoft has enjoyed huge success with its Windows Media DRM (the latest version of which is called PlayReady), especially in video. In fact, I think the it’s used by all of the online movie rental services licensed by Hollywood except Apple’s iTunes Store. But the business model du jour for video on the Web is free, ad-supported content, which means it’s important to reach the maximum number of viewers. That’s why some studios have shifted away from Windows Media and its DRM, which work only on computers and devices running Windows, in favor of Flash, which works on all sorts of operating systems and devices.

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