MP4 files are also typically seen when a video is downloaded from the internet. The explosion in popularity of the MP4 format is largely down to Apple and the iTunes Store, as it is the standard format for almost all of the media downloaded from the store. The video part is compressed with MPEG-4, a standard that was developed by Moving Picture Expert Group (MPEG), while the audio is typically compressed using AAC compression. Video and audio compression are usually handled by different codecs (audiovisual encoders). MP4 files are typically smaller in size than other audio or video file types because MP4 files use a mix of compression technologies. The file is similar in construction to the standard Flash file (.SWF) in that it stores the audio and the video in much the same way, and just like the standard Flash file it cannot be viewed on iOS.Īn MP4, sometimes known as an MPEG4, is a multimedia file that is used to store video or audio data.

Sites wuchg as Hulu, Netflix and YouTube itself followed suit in moving to HTML5 for video playback, and in doing so almost killed off the FLV file format. In later years the popularity of the format waned, not least when Apple made a move to HTML5 as their standard file type for streaming video. Historically Flash video became the de facto file type for almost all video players in the early days of video on the Internet, thanks to the popularity of YouTube, and also the Flash plugin for web browsers, which ensured widespread support for the format. FLV files can be opened using software such as Adobe Flash Player and VLC.

The FLV file, or Flash Video File, was originally developed by Macromedia, a company who were later acquired by Adobe Systems in 2005.

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