Google's Chrome, Google Inc.'s new Web browser, is displayed on an laptop. (Photo : Getty Images/Alexander Hassenstein)
Google recently launched version 55 of its internet browser, Chrome. The browser now favors HTML5 video playback instead of the traditional Flash media player. However, this does not mean a total blockade on the latter.
As of the latest version of Chrome, there are only 10 sites allowed to display Flash content, and only after the user gives their consent. Among the sites included in the list are Facebook, YouTube, Twitch.tv, and Amazon. All other sites will have to render their content through HTML5.
According to PC World, it was originally intended to prompt a user to give their permission every time media needs to be played via Chrome, if they will allow it or not. However, this would result in too many pop ups that could annoy its users so, instead, the search engine giant decided to use a "Site Engagement" metric that will help determine the browsing habits of its users on sites they visit.
With the new metric, a prompt will appear on newly visited websites that contain media files. The browser will then remember that choice and will implement it once a user revisits the same website.
A presentation slide prepared by Google explains that the new metric will give a website a score based on the frequency of visits. Right now, all websites will only require a score of 1 in order to use the Flash plugin instead of HTML5, but by July 2017, the threshold will be increased to 100. By that time, users will be prompted to choose the media platform when they visit sites with Flash videos that do not meet the score requirement.
Google Chrome is not the only one interested in eliminating Flash content from the web. Browsers like Microsoft Edge and Mozilla Firefox are also implementing this change, but their process is slower compared to Chrome. It was actually Apple's Safari 10 that beat them all when the Cupertino-based tech giant rolled out macOS Sierra back in September. However, Chrome's move has a bigger impact because of its large user base.
Many would probably wonder what the fuss is behind HTML5 and Flash. The former is a more recent technology and is deemed more efficient, secure and less prone to crashes compared to the latter.
