Microsoft has officially launched its Flash rival Silverlight .

Silverlight 1.0 provides cross browser support under both Windows and OS X, and in a partnership with Novell will also be available for Linux.

Silverlight was initially released to rave reviews in late April, with Michael Arrington saying that it would become “the platform of choice for developers who build rich Internet applications.”

Microsoft has rolled out a number of Silverlight powered applications since then, including Live Station, Popfly and Tafiti.

Microsoft has also announced that a number of content providers will be providing Silverlight enabled content online, including Entertainment Tonight, HSN and World Wrestling Entertainment.

For a full explanation of what Silverlight does read here.

(via Beet.tv)