thecoalman - 11:57 am on Aug 26, 2011 (gmt 0)

When considering just the codec itself there is only one that could be considered "universal", mpeg1, that produces huge files compared to newer codecs. Next in line is WMV9 but that has issues cross platform.

The best way to deliver video to the masses is through a flash player, this negates the need for the user to have the codec installed but of course they need flash installed.