HTML and CSS Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 7-19
video formats
File Format
File Extension
MIME Type
Video Codec(s)
Description
Flash Video
.flv
video/x-flv
VP6
Sorenson Spark
H.264
A proprietary file format
developed by Adobe to
deliver video over the
Internet using the popular
Adobe Flash Player
MP4
.mp4
video/mpeg
MPEG-4
H.264
A widely-used proprietary
format developed by Apple
with versions of the H.264
codec used in all of Apple's
mobile devices
Ogg Theora
.ogv
video/ogg
Theora
An open source format
developed by the Xiph.org
Foundation that uses the
Theora codec as an alterna-
tive to the MPEG-4 codec
WebM
.webm
video/webm
VP8
An open source format
introduced by Google to
provide royalty-free video
and audio to be used with
the HTML5 video element
Video Formats under HTML5
As with audio support, the introduction of video in HTML5 involved determining what
video formats would be supported in the new standard. The original HTML5 specifica-
tions called on browsers to support the Ogg Theora format in the same way that Ogg
Vorbis was to be the designated audio format. As with the audio recommendation, this
was rescinded in later specifications. Currently, three video formats are supported across
current browsers: Ogg Theora, MP4, and WebM. Both Ogg Theora and WebM are royalty-
free formats, allowing for free and open use by video developers. The H.264 codec is the
most widely used codec and is used by Apple in its mobile devices and iTunes software.
Complicating matters is the fact that Google decided in 2011 to discontinue support for
H.264 in its Chrome browser, instead opting to develop the WebM format. Figure 7-20
lists the support for the different video formats at the time of this writing.
Figure 7-20
video formats supported by HtMl5 video
Browser
MP4
Ogg Theora
WebM
✓
Internet Explorer
✓
✓
Firefox
✓
Safari
✓
✓
Chrome
✓
✓
Opera
