Rumors are swirling about Google's plans to release VP8, the video codec that powers YouTube, as open source. That could put an end to the HTML5 video wars between open codec Ogg Theora (backed by Mozilla, and backed by Google on mobile devices) and H.264, the proprietary codec favored by Apple and Microsoft (in IE9, anyway).
VP8 arguably offers better quality than Theora, and it wouldn't have H.264's licensing issues if it were made open source. In theory, it could crush them both. In practice, it could be a political issue. Apple will probably keep pushing H.264 hard, and what Microsoft might do is anyone's guess. The Inquirer is reporting that Google's announcement is expected next month. HTML5 video has become the best soap opera on the web, and I can't wait to see what happens next.
Google to open-source YouTube's video codec, may end HTML5 video war
