Support for the WebM video format on Apple’s mobile operating system allows for the playback of videos encoded using the royalty-free VP8 or VP9 codecs within applications and web browsers on iPhones and iPads. For instance, a user might access a website featuring videos encoded in VP9 and be able to view them natively within Safari on iOS.
Enabling this functionality provides a significant benefit by broadening compatibility with modern video formats, leading to improved user experiences and reduced transcoding requirements for content providers. Historically, lack of native support necessitated workarounds, such as third-party players or server-side format conversion, adding complexity and potential performance overhead.