Brightcove Adds HTML5 Support Ahead of iPad Launch

Internet streaming video company Brightcove announced on Monday that it is officially supporting HTML5 video, which means companies like the New York Times and Time Inc. will be able to offer video content to iPad users when the multimedia tablet ships on April 3.

HTML5 is seen as an alternative to Adobe’s ubiquitous Flash multimedia delivery platform, and it has the added advantage of being supported by the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. Flash content, in contrast, isn’t playable on Apple’s handheld devices.

“Our customers want to be able to deliver their video content to every screen without sacrificing the quality, interactivity and monetization capabilities they have come to expect from the Brightcove platform,” said Brightcove CEO Jeremy Allaire. Brightcove clients are already working on building what the company is calling “iPad-ready” Web sites.

Brightcove isn’t the only company to add HTML5 video streaming support in recent weeks. YouTube and Vimeo have been testing HTML5 video streaming, and Virgin America dropped Flash from its Web site. CBS began testing HTML5 streaming in March, too, although at the time it looked to be experiencing some problems.

Apple’s iPad is set to ship on April 3. The multimedia tablet device supports movie and music playback, and many newspapers and magazines are planning to offer content tailored for its 9.7-inch mulitouch display.