InfoWorld: The BBC Seeks Escape from Patent Minefield

“It seems like everywhere you look, open standards and open
formats are becoming the preferred means of delivering digital
documents. XML, for one, is now the darling of the enterprise: Even
Microsoft has committed to an open XML format for its upcoming
Office 12 suite. But whereas static, printable document formats
become more and more universally open, the picture isn’t so rosy
for multimedia.

“The BBC wants to change that. Supported by public funds, the
BBC is committed to providing free and open access to audio and
video media to a wide audience. But even for the largest broadcast
media organization in the United Kingdom, breaking the grip of
proprietary digital media standards isn’t going to be easy…”

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