When QT 4 comes out with live streams then you can make a quality comparison, but Real will still have several
advantages over QT including lower bitrate streams, integration with shockwave, and enough marketing
agreements with the major players to all but insure that QT streams will never even get a foothold unless it turns
out to be a quantum leap better then Real and/or Apple pays through the nose. And don't forget, Apple has no
way of making real money off this stuff!
Actually, that's the real reason Apple may have an advantage - it doesn't need or want to make money off the streaming server. In the end, Apple is currently about selling boxes.
Real Networks, on the other hand, is 100% dependent on revenue from server sales. Apple can afford to give away the QT streaming server and play Microsoft with Real. It will be interesting, especially if Apple open-sources the QT streaming server.
As for the quality issue, I believe QT4 streaming will be superior at low and high bitrates. QT's flexible architecture means a variety of great codecs to optimize for all types of playthrough.
It's not just a better product, but a better architecture, which is already supported by tons of 3rd party developers. It also will not require the file-format conversions that Real requires.
The real question is whether there will be QT Streaming servers for Solaris and NT. If so, Real may be in trouble. |
