VP8 is an open video compression format created by On2 Technologies, which was bought by Google in 2010.

In May 2010, after the purchase, Google provided an almost irrevocable patent promise on its patents for implementing the VP8 format, and released a specification of the format under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Google also released in 2010 libvpx, the reference implementation of VP8, under a BSD license.

VP8 was released by On2 Technologies on September 13, 2008, replacing its predecessor, VP7.

Google acquired On2 in 2010. There were calls for Google to release the VP8 source code, notably from the Free Software Foundation, which issued an open letter on March 12, 2010, asking Google to gradually replace the usage of the Adobe Flash Player and H.264 on YouTube with a mixture of HTML5 and a freed VP8.

On May 19, 2010, at its Google I/O conference, Google released the VP8 codec software under a BSD-like license and the VP8 bitstream format specification under an almost irrevocable free patent license. This made VP8 the second product from On2 Technologies to be opened, following the older VP3 codec in 2002. VP3 was later donated to the Xiph.Org Foundation, and is the basis of the Theora codec.

The Jackson family is an American family of singers who originated in Gary, Indiana. Performing as members of The Jackson 5 and as solo artists, the children of Joseph Walter and Katherine Esther Jackson influenced and shaped the sound of popular music. As a group, the eldest sons Jackie (Sigmund Esco "Jackie" Jackson), Tito (Toriano Adaryll "Tito" Jackson ), Jermaine (Jermaine La Jaune Jackson), Marlon (Marlon David Jackson), and Michael (Michael Joseph Jackson), set the family on a path of musical success that spread among siblings Rebbie, La Toya, Randy, and Janet. The acclaim of The Jackson 5 led the group to become known as the "First Family of Soul" (a title first held by the Five Stairsteps); the continued success of Michael and Janet's careers as solo artists led the Jacksons to become known as the "Royal Family of Pop". Eight of the nine Jackson siblings (excluding La Toya) have gold records to their credits.

Members of the Jackson family have been the subject of heavily publicized controversies and legal imbroglios, most notably allegations of child abuse against Michael in 1993, his criminal trial in 2005, and Janet's controversial Super Bowl halftime performance in 2004. Some Jackson siblings have, at various times, publicly criticized one another and alleged abuse at the hands of their father. In spite of these circumstances and other troubles, the Jacksons have continued to be praised for shaping the world of entertainment with some of the siblings' own children taking the spotlight in various careers.