Friday, March 29, 2024

HTML5 is Ready for Prime Time

Apple’s decision not to support Flash may have been just the push that HTML5 needed, as major publishers turn to the emerging standard to get video content ready for the iPad. Since it needs no plug-in to display video, HTML5 is paving the way for companies such as CBS, the Wall Street Journal and NPR, who are all actively utilizing it to revamp their websites.


Although the video codecs used to support video via HTML5 may be up for debate, lines are being drawn in the sand. CBS is using the H.264 video codec along with HTML5 to enable iPad users to view video content on their website. Others, such as the Wall Street Journal and NPR.org have already confirmed that they will also be using HTML5 in order to be ready for the release of the iPad (and the Safari web browser that ships with it) in the next week.


The major focus for most mobile web developers has been the task of creating sites that can gracefully degrade for users whose devices don’t support Flash. HTML5 fills the bill, and by auto-detecting the user’s browser, developers are able to provide HTML5 video for those devices. Desktop users are still able to view the video using Flash. The opportunities the emerging standard provides for developers targeting the iPad make it worth investing in now–the time to procrastinate is over.

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