Akamai Gets Ready for HD Video

Akamai, under pricing pressure from upstart rivals such as Limelight Networks, is upping the ante in the content delivery network wars. The company announced a new distributed delivery mechanism optimized for the delivery of high definition-quality content online. The push for HD video over the Internet is a way for Cambridge, Mass.-based Akamai to get an edge over the increasing number of commodity CDN service providers. The company is using technologies from its recent acquisitions of Nine Systems and Red Swoosh for this new effort, which it describes as a “distributed delivery model.” Akamai Chief Technology Officer Mike Afergan told us that many of the company’s media clients are now producing content in HD and are looking for ways to distribute it over the Internet. Higher quality video isn’t likely to make its presence felt on Web video communities (such as YouTube) anytime soon, but companies that make television shows and films have an eye on HD.
http://www.akamai.com/html/about/press/releases/2007/press_082707.html

http://gigaom.com/2007/08/28/akamai-gets-ready-for-hd-video/