CBS Innertube
screen capture of innertube asking user to select windows media or real player.
Have a question about a design/development aspect of Innertube, the new online video service launched last week by CBS.
When you visit Innertube it requires you to have the Flash 8 plug in loaded in order to view the site. No problem there. Strong argument to be made that Flash is still the best tool to use for building a rich media application.
I understand and respect the argument of those who don’t want to force users into a Flash site, but if you are over that hurdle and have committed to building on a Flash 8 platform that requires the user to have the Flash plug in, why then force the user into using additional plug ins like Windows Media Player or Real Player to view the video as Innertube appears to do? Why not just seamlessly keep it all in Flash, including the video codec and delivery, and save the user the hassle?
Since the On2 VP6 codec available in Flash 8 is competitive, one might then think that maybe there are some DRM issues in the mix guiding the choice, but after looking at the limited viral options the user has for viewing the video, maintaining control of distribution appears relatively straight forward.
Overall Innertube is a nice step forward by CBS, and the team that made it happen deserves praise. But that development decision is a little puzzling though.
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