LongTail Video (http://www.longtailvideo.com) — a provider of self-serve video solutions for web publishers — has unveiled its latest “State of HTML5 Video” report (http://www.longtailvideo.com/html5/), showing continued growth in HTML5 support and playback across the browser market, while highlighting other trends and issues in both mobile and desktop browsers.
Approximately 74% of the browser market now offers HTML5 support, up from 68% in January. Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and IE9, the latest version of Internet Explorer, grew their market shares over the first quarter, while use of non-supportive and outdated versions of Internet Explorer continued to shrink.
The “State of HTML5 Video” also examines how browsers support the JavaScript API [application programming interface], a crucial component for giving developers control over how video content is displayed and interacts with the rest of a webpage. LongTail tested factors like loading, buffering, playback and volume controls, and found that 80% of scripting was reliable and consistent.
The mobile landscape is slightly different, and both iOS and Android ignore volume control features included in the JavaScript API. Apple’s iOS system also blocks scripted play commands, complicating the implementation of pre-, mid- and post-roll advertising.
The report also found that full-screen HTML5 video is now available from a majority of web browsers. This is crucial for HTML5 video growth, as full-screen playback creates a better experience for both viewer and content creator through an engaging, engrossing viewing session, notes LongTail Video.