Adobe Advances Flash Platform Media Delivery
Press Release
Adobe Systems Incorporated has announced major new advancements to the Adobe Flash Platform — Adobe’s design and development platform for creating and delivering content, video and applications that run consistently across operating systems and devices. Highlights include the immediate availability of Adobe Flash Access 2.0 software, a content protection solution that enables the distribution and monetization of premium video content, which can help create new sources of revenue for media publishers. In addition, Adobe is also showcasing HTTP Dynamic Streaming, a new protocol support for media streaming on the Flash Platform; and the Open Source Media Framework, to accelerate development of custom media players.
These powerful new Flash media delivery tools come in advance of the much-anticipated releases of Flash Player 10.1 and Adobe AIR 2, which are optimized for high performance on mobile screens and designed to take advantage of native device capabilities for a richer, more immersive user experience.
Protecting and Monetizing Premium Content
Further advancing the Flash Platform, Adobe today made available Adobe Flash Access 2.0, a scalable, flexible content protection solution that enables the distribution and monetization of premium video content.
Adobe Flash Access 2.0 provides a way to combine the unprecedented reach and interactivity of the Adobe Flash Platform with robust security and flexible usage rules so that businesses can enforce necessary constraints, such as limiting viewing to a given rental period.
Adobe Flash Access 2.0, previously known as Adobe Flash Media Rights Management Serer, enables media publishers to effectively monetize video content using a variety of business models, such as pay-per-view, electronic sell-through or advertising funded business models.
New in this release, content protected with Flash Access 2.0 will play back securely online via Flash Player 10.1 software as well as Adobe AIR 2.0. Also new in Flash Access 2.0 is support for output protection, which can be used to protect content sent to external displays.
Adobe Flash Access 2.0 is one of the first approved content protection solutions selected by the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE). DECE is a consortium of leading content providers, consumer electronics companies, technology vendors and service providers working to enable improved consumer access to entertainment content.
Expanding Content Delivery with HTTP Dynamic Streaming
Building on the success of Adobe’s Flash Platform for the delivery of streaming content, Adobe’s new HTTP Dynamic Streaming leverages industry standards to provide content publishers, distributors and developers the tools they need to utilize HTTP infrastructures for high-quality media delivery in Flash Player 10.1 and AIR 2.
While Flash Media Serer 3.5 remains the choice for delivering interactive media experiences over RTMP (Real Time Message Protocol) with features like new trick modes, smart caching technology, protection and real time communication, customers will now have the flexibility to use HTTP Dynamic streaming which enables the use of existing network infrastructures and standard Web serer hardware to deliver rich media experiences on a massive scale.
HTTP Dynamic Streaming includes integration of content protection powered by Flash Access 2.0, allowing publishers to encrypt and apply business rules to their premium video content for both lie and video on Demand (OD). Protected HTTP Dynamic Streaming allows publishers to secure valuable video content with a flexible workflow while maintaining the robust and persistent content protection features of Flash Access.
HTTP Dynamic Streaming supports all of the high-quality media codecs supported by the Flash Platform today, including H.264 and P6, and all of the uses cases media companies rely on, including high quality lie and recorded media with adaptive bit-rate and network DR support to the Flash player.
Accelerating Media Player Development
Rounding out Adobe’s media delivery solution for the Flash Platform, the Open Source Media Framework (OSMF) is an open framework for building custom media players.
The new framework will help establish an industry standard for media players and will offer production-ready components to help streamline the development process, reducing the time content publishers spend creating and integrating playback technologies.
OSMF enables developers to easily assemble pluggable components to create high-quality, full-featured playback experiences.
The open framework enables collaborative development focused on Web video monetization with lower costs and faster turnaround.
Pricing and Availability
Adobe Flash Access 2.0 is available immediately. For pricing information related to Adobe Flash Access 2.0, please contact an Adobe sales representative at www.adobe.com/go/flashaccess_rfi. HTTP Dynamic Streaming for video on demand is expected to be available at no charge. Pricing for HTTP Dynamic Streaming for lie streaming is available upon request. Both products are scheduled to ship in late May. OSMF is free, and is expected to be available in late May.
