14 DAY TRIAL // With today's release of the Opera 10.5 beta, HTML5 video is again moving one step closer to becoming the default way video is served online. There's a lot of ground to cover yet, but with four of the five major browsers supporting the feature, it's definitely on the right track. But, while any support for the upcoming standard is a good sign, Opera's latest move only makes the matter murkier than it already was and it further exacerbates the main issue behind HTML5 video, the codecs.
Codec choice and support is now the most heated issue with HTML5 video and one not likely to be settled soon, a major setback for a wider adoption of the proposed standard. There are two main competitors, the open source Theora and the proprietary h.264. Theora is more popular with browser makers, as it doesn't involve an expensive license and it creates a healthier environment for online video. h.264, on the other hand, is preferred by most video sites, at least the ones that ventured to launch support for HTML5 video, mostly for its superior performance and quality.
Mozilla is a strong supporter of Theora and will not implement h.264. Apple, on the other hand, has concerns about "hidden patents" in Theora and only supports the h.264 in Safari. Google supports both in Chrome and Internet Explorer neither. You can read more about why Mozilla made its choice and the issues surrounding both codecs here.
With Opera siding with Mozilla, Theora is gaining ground, at least when it comes to browser support. But this means that Opera users won't be able to watch HTML5 videos from YouTube or Vimeo. The Norwegian browser maker doesn't make too much of a fuss over this, but, then again, it didn't have much of a choice, licensing h.264 would have proven prohibitively expensive for the small company. Still, the HTML5 video element is clearly important for the browser maker.
"One of the most exciting new features of HTML5 is the inclusion of the <video> element, which allows developers to include video directly in their pages without the need for any plugin-based solution. Opera proposed the standard <video> element as part of HTML5 back in 2007, and it made its official Opera debut in the Opera 10.50 pre-alpha release," Opera's Bruce Lawson and Patrick H. Lauke write.
Opera prefers focusing more on what HTML5 video brings and how developers can make the best of it leaving the politics aside. The browser maker has put up quite a thorough introduction to the <video> element in HTML5 even showing developers how they can implement the feature so that it works in other browsers than Opera.
Opera 10.5 Beta 1 for Windows is available for download here.