“The BBC is quietly preparing a challenge to Microsoft and other
companies jostling to reap revenues from video streams. It is
developing code-decode (codec) software called Dirac in an
open-source project aimed at providing a royalty-free way to
distribute video.“The sums at stake are potentially huge because the software
industry insists on payment per viewer, per hour of encoded
content. This contrasts with TV technology, for which viewers and
broadcasters alike make a one-off royalties payment when they buy
their equipment…”
Related Story:
The
Register: BBC Develops ‘Alternative’ Codec(May 11, 2004)