Microsoft takes media beyond Windows
C|Net | at | by Mike
Microsoft announced Tuesday its first-ever licensing fees for use of its media delivery software on non-Windows technology, a move designed to expand its reach in the market for digital media players.
In the process, the company is positioning itself to capture a growing market in consumer electronics that is migrating to new digital media standards like MPEG-4, a standard for compressing large digital files into a smaller format that can be more easily transmitted over networks.
For use of the its video compression technology on non-Windows operating systems, Microsoft will charge 10 cents per decoder, 20 cents per encoder, or 25 cents for both. In comparison, MPEG-LA--a consortium of companies holding patents attached to MPEG-4--charges 25 cents per encoder and decoder, or 50 cents for both.