If you're waiting for Silverlight to arrive on smartphones, it's now become clear that Microsoft at least partially hopes iPhone users will get a taste as well.
Betanews has interviewed a Microsoft spokesperson in conjunction with PDC 2009, and it turns out Microsoft got the green light from Apple to test a new server-based streaming solution on the iPhone. Now, it's not the Silverlight integration in Windows Mobile 7 (and Moblin) we're all waiting for, but a solution that converts videos to let Microsoft stream H.264 video to iPhone users through the HTML 5 video tag.
If you were hoping that the HTML 5 video tag would unite the Web on one open-source video format, we have our doubts that it'll happen anytime soon. Apple for instance wants to use the video tag to stream the video format they support, a video format that for instance Microsoft doesn't really want to support. However, with the new iPhone solution the company has made, Microsoft's video server does convert to the "iPhone format".
With the gigantic iPhone and iPod touch sales numbers, Microsoft simply can't ignore that huge market of media hungry users. We suspect Microsoft's wet dream is to get real Silverlight integration on the iPhone platform so Apple could promote Silverlight apps, but we guess that's out of the question for the time being. But imagine Microsoft providing key app technology to Apple anyway - that would have been weird.
Check out the full Betanews interview here.
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