Akamai to deliver Flash content to desktops

22.02.2005
Von 
Paul Krill ist Redakteur unserer US-Schwesterpublikation InfoWorld.

Akamai Technologies Inc. and Macromedia Inc. on Tuesday are announcing availability of Akamai Streaming for use with Macromedia Flash, providing Akamai customers with an on-demand Flash streaming media service.

The service is delivered over Akamai"s EdgePlatform network to desktops running the Macromedia Flash Player rich Internet client. Companies can deliver interactive Flash video experiences including product demonstrations, announcements, sales training, and TV shows.

The Akamai-Macromedia alliance "will enable customers to deliver Flash video experiences over the Akamai network," said Chris Hock, director of product management for Macromedia.

Publishers are able to lower development and other costs because Flash eliminates the complications of deploying video on-demand applications across multiple platforms and browsers, according to the two companies. Content providers upload content to Akamai NetStorage facilities, whereupon it is delivered across Akamai"s network to users" desktops.

The solution functions on Flash Player 6 or higher-numbered versions. Video in Flash can be custom-branded and synchronized with contextual elements such as graphs, charts, text, and other audio and video streams.

Pricing of the service ranges from about US$2,000 to several hundred-thousand dollars, depending on usage levels.