What format should streaming video be in?

[shauber]

I am looking to add streaming video to my site, and I am hoping someone can tell me which format is best if I want my users to be able to stream the video onto their iPad, smart phone, Mac, or PC.

Please help clarify the differences between mpeg, mov, or flash video files.

Thanks in advance!
Sara

[PaulKroll]

If it's going to an iPad, I'm pretty sure it's gotta be h.264. That can be mov, mp4, m4v: You've got some reading to do on the differences between codecs (audio and video) and containers. Or forget all that, and find a streaming service you can check against the devices/OSes you want to work with, or just put the thing up on youtube.