Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Firm Eyes Microsoft, Widevine With Adaptive Streaming Patent

A startup developing high definition, streaming technology for the Internet, name dropped two local firms--Microsoft and Widevine--after getting notice that it has received a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. According to Move Networks, a firm started by Novell founder Drew Major and backed by Steamboat Ventures, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, Benchmark Capital, Microsoft, Cisco, Comcast and Televisa, it has just received notice from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that its application for a patent on adaptive streaming has been approved. Move--whose technology had been implemented by major media sites, but apparently started looking for a buyer earlier this year--said it introduced adaptive bit rate streaming in 2006, and that "practically every major online video provider", including Akamai, Apple, Adobe, Limelight, Microsoft, Netflix, Widevine, and others, then deployed adaptive bit rate architecture "inspired by" its invention. The firm did not outline what it planned to do with the patent.