Web Media Technologies

The Web Media Matrix is an attempt to summarize the information about the currently available media distribution (streaming) technologies for the web, and to provide a visual way of understanding how these technologies relate to each other.

Overview

Media Delivery Technologies

• Flash (Adobe)
• Windows Media (Microsoft)
• Silverlight (Microsoft)
• Quicktime

Server Platforms

• Unix/Linux
• Windows Server (Microsoft)

Desktop Platforms

• Mac OS (Apple)
• Windows (Microsoft)
• Unix/Linux

Browsers

• IE (Windows)
• Mozilla Firefox (Windows, Unix/Linux)
• Opera (Windows, Unix/Linux)
• Safary (Mac OS)

The Web Media Matrix

The table below illustrates how the web media technologies inegrate into the multi-platform ecosystem.

Client/Server	Windows	Unix/Linux
Internet Explorer, Windows	Silverlight, Flash, Quicktime, Windows Media	Silverlight, Flash
Firefox, Windows	Silverlight, Flash, Quicktime, Windows Media	Silverlight, Flash
Opera, Windows	Flash, Quicktime, Windows Media	Flash
Mac (Firefox, Safari)	Silverlight, Flash, Quicktime	Silverlight, Flash
Unix/Linux	Silverlight, Flash	Silverlight, Flash

Architecture Approaches

• Use a limited number of Windows-based servers for encoding or other processing tasks.
• Use high-load UNIX-based servers for giving away content for end users.

See Also

• Windows Media Services
• Silverlight
• Web Development

External Links

• Comparison of Video Technologies for the Web
• Adobe Media Server Pricing
• Wowza Media Server Pricing