Microsoft touts media business gains with Silverlight

Microsoft chose the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show 2008 in Las Vegas to announce new customers for its Silverlight rich-media player and introduce software aimed at broadcasters.

It also detailed SilverlightDRM, a content protection system based on Microsoft's PlayReady technology, which is set to be available later this year with Silverlight 2.

The digital rights management, or DRM, software will work with streamed, progressive download, and downloadable media, and it can be extended by third-party software companies, Microsoft said.

Microsoft is trying to make Silverlight the preferred medium to broadcast video on the Web--a challenge, given the resounding lead that Adobe Systems has with Flash.

Microsoft said 1.5 million people a day are downloading Silverlight. Adobe claims that more than 90 percent of Web users are already using the current version of the Flash Player.

New Silverlight customers include Madison Square Garden (MSG) Interactive, Chinese Web portal Tencent, Abertis Telecom, and Terra Networks Operations. Other notable recent customers include NBCOlympics.com and Yahoo Japan.

While they woo content producers, both companies are also battling over software developers. The millions of programmers trained in Microsoft's .Net tools can write rich Internet applications with Silverlight. Adobe, too, is boosting up its tools investment around Web toolkits and Flex.

Also at NAB, Microsoft announced enhancements to products aimed at broadcasters.

Microsoft and Ascent Media Group have formed a partnership to automate the supply chain for the entertainment industry. It also said Microsoft executives will show off versions of its Dynamics packaged applications customized for the media customers at NAB.

Microsoft also added features to its Interactive Media Manager application, which is built on SharePoint Server, including a Silverlight rough-cut video editor and an enhanced searchable media catalog.

[Penguinisto]

DRM is dying, you idiots.

*sigh* - how long will it take the media industry to fully realize this? DRM is worthless, a waste of resources, and a hindrance to progress (and historical archival).

/P

[russkeller]

DRM has destroyed everything it's touched

And now Microsoft has an OS and their big new program with big steaks in DRM?! Are their management just stupid or getting slipped a few bucks by EMI?

[codesmith]

What's the point?

OK, Microsoft, as an uninvolved observer I'd like to know: What's the point of Silverlight? Is Flash fatally flawed, or are you really as insatiably greedy as some folk say?

[bruce wang]

Designers or Developers

Quite interesting competition.

By the way, I think maybe the designers are the most important factor for that RIA.

Of course you have to know some programming. But because designers have made bunch of Web effects till so far, and because even in RIA the design is the one of the most important thing, I think the designers' got the key.

I think almost 90% of designers over the world are very familliar with Adobe's products, and they are not willing to change their primal tools. They can produce best of their ability with current tools, and they can not produce same quality with new tool so easily.

What do you think?