And this is The web giveth, and the web taketh away, written Mar 15, 2007, and concerning Politics, Web, and Rants

The WHAT-WG have been putting together specifications for a new version of HTML, to avoid the stagnation of the W3C. (Recently, the W3C seem to be responding to that by setting up their own working group, and you can be a part of that process; the WHAT-WG is already open to the public). Lots of interesting things happening there, but two recently show the two sides of the web, good and bad. First, you can embed video into Internet Explorer without using <object> or <embed>, using HTML+TIME, a really interesting open W3C standard that no-one else ever bothered to implement (like VML, really). Cool technique, and another example of how the Microsoft IE team do interesting stuff and don't just try and screw up the web. We have to remember this when preaching the new standards orthodoxy. And then, over on the dark side, Apple are asserting patent rights over the <canvas> element, which they invented and the WHAT-WG have included in their proposal for a new HTML. Microsoft doing cool exciting and innovative stuff; Apple using bully-boy legal tactics to shut down innovation. Funny how the wheel turns, isn't it?

Comments

Nick Fitzsimons

To me, the sentence

However, in the event that the Web Applications 1.0 Working Draft, dated March 24, 2005, becomes part of a formalized draft standard at W3C or IETF, for example, Apple is prepared to address the disclosure/licensing rules of such organizations

seems to mean that Apple are happy to comply with, for example, the W3C's Patent Policy in the event that <canvas> becomes part of a draft standard. That would entail them agreeing to the terms of the Royalty Free Licensing requirements, meaning they would have to give away the right to use it without charge. I get the impression that all the "intellectual property rights" stuff before that is just legal boilerplate that they have to include as part of due diligence on behalf of their shareholders.

Ian Hickson

HTML+TIME isn't an open standard. It's a member submission to the W3C, submitted by Microsoft and others. It was not developed in the open and didn't have a review period.

sil

Hixie: thanks for the correction. I should have said "documented" rather than "open", although I'm having difficulty finding any documentation on what that video element should actually play!

Marko

Wouldn't it be daft to put something like this into a standard and THEN hope that Apple will do the right thing?

Sahibinden

Thank you