On2 updates video codec

On2 Technologies said on Thursday that it has released an updated version of its video compression , TrueMotion VP6, with improvements to its speed and quality, after receiving input from customers. Last May, the New York-based company officially launched VP6, a software product that compresses large video files for transport and decoding to a wide range of electronics devices, including set-top boxes, PCs and handheld computers.

The newest VP6 is full-motion video compression and streaming technology that adds better support for multiple platforms, including Intel and Equator; improves speed of "best quality" viewing by about 20 percent; and supports real-time encoding at full D1 resolution, among other new features, according to the company. On2 also said that since October, when it began offering a free version of VP6 for personal use, more than 50,000 people have downloaded the video codec.