Google has built the WebRTC technology into a test version of Chrome
to let the browser run voice and video chat applications within the
browser interface.
Chrome's Dev Channel version now has WebRTC,
a technology Google acquired in 2010 and open sourced last year that
uses Javascript APIs (application programming interfaces) and HTML5 to
give browsers native, real-time communications capabilities.
"Building industry-leading voice and video capabilities into the
browser makes it easier for web developers to incorporate real time
communications in their apps. Instead of relying on custom, OS specific,
proprietary plug-ins, they can now easily build and maintain their apps
using a few simple JavaScript APIs and have the browser do the heavy
lifting," Niklas Enbom, a Google software engineer
WebRTC, which is also being supported by browser makers Mozilla and Opera, is being considered for standard status at the W3C
and the IETF. Companies like Polycom, Vonage, Vehix.com, Semens and
PCCW are developing browser-based applications using the technology,
according to Enbom.
Google acquired WebRTC when it bought Global IP Solutions in 2010 and
released it as open-source code in mid-2011. With WebRTC, developers
will be able to create voice and video chat applications that execute
inside the browser, without users needing to install plug-ins, according
to the technology's website.
"[WebRTC] includes the fundamental building blocks for high quality
communications on the web such as network, audio and video components
used in voice and video chat applications," reads a description. "These
components, when implemented in a browser, can be accessed through a
Javascript API, enabling developers to easily implement their own RTC
web app."
Google wants Web browsers to be as fast and as capable of running
applications as possible, which is why it came out with its own browser,
Chrome, and made its development project, Chromium, open source.
There are four tiers of Chrome browser releases:
the Canary Build, non-tested and not guaranteed to run; the Dev
Channel, tested but likely to contain bugs; the Beta Channel, more
tested and polished; and the Stable Channel, which is fully tested.