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RealNetworks Adds SMIL Code to Helix

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Jul 7, 2003

Digital media heavyweight RealNetworks on Monday added
the code for SMIL to its open-source Helix Community, a move
that allows the creation of multimedia presentations that integrate
streaming audio and video with images and text.

The Seattle-based RealNetworks said the source code for SMIL 2.0
(Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language) would be available for Helix
community developers to create and display interactive audio/visual
presentations.

SMIL, based on XML, is a new markup language developed by the World Wide
Web Consortium (W3C) that lets developers divide multimedia content into
separate files and streams (audio, video, text, and images), send them to a
user’s computer individually, and then have them displayed together as if
they were a single multimedia stream.

The release of the SMIL source code to the Helix Community comes as
RealNetworks continues to battle cross-town rivals Microsoft for the lucrative enterprise digital media market. Real’s
open-source Helix Community, created late last year to strike a chord with
the developer community, is the company’s answer to Microsoft’s
all-encompassing Windows Media 9 Series platform.

Both companies have scored
lucrative partnerships with big-name electronics and chipset firms and
the latest addition of SMIL code gives RealNetworks another carrot to add to
the mix.

The company’s flagship Helix DNA Client is currently being used by major
middleware and electronics firms to enable digital media on DVD players, set
top boxes, PDAs, and mobile devices.

RealNetworks VP in charge of Helix Products and Solutions Nagesh
Pabbisetty said the addition of SMIL code will jump-start development of
audio/video-enabled products in desktop and mobile devices.

He said Web developers looking to display content on devices like top
boxes, mobile and handheld devices can now implement the Helix DNA Client
with SMIL functionality. “This simplifies both the product development
process and the creation of content — as SMIL enables content owners to
create complex media presentations without using scripting languages,” the
company said in its announcement.

The cross-platform SMIL source code (Windows, Mac and Linux) is available
under a no-cost open source or a royalty-based commercial license.

RealNetworks said the SMIL standard offers advantages in several areas,
including:

Presentation layout and timing — SMIL allows the arrangement and
manipulation of elements of a video, audio or graphics animation
presentation to play simultaneously or on a specific time sequence.

Tailoring a presentation for different audiences — SMIL can stream
different clips to audiences based on criteria such as language or available
bandwidth, all accessible without just one hyperlink. When a URL is opened,
the Helix DNA Client-based application would read the options in the SMIL
file and choose the appropriate presentation.

Flexibility in media organization — A SMIL file lists a separate
URL for each clip so presentations can be put together using clips stored on
any server. This allows SMIL to eliminate the need to merge multiple clips
into a single streaming file.

RealNetworks Adds SMIL Code to Helix

Ryan Naraine

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