Watch the NFL online - with an assist from Adobe

September 7, 12:39 PMBusiness ExaminerDarrell Proctor

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Peyton Manning and the Colts take on the
Bears tonight in Indianapolis - and you can
watch the game online.

The NFL season got under way last Thursday but it hits full stride today. And thanks to Adobe Systems' Flash technology, you'll be able to see live video streaming of tonight's Indianapolis Colts-Chicago Bears contest from the new Lucas Oil Stadium in downtown Indy.

The stream will be available on NFL.com and NBCSports.com.

Adobe and the NFL say it's the first time (actually the second, since last Thursday's season opener between the New York Giants and Washington Redskins also was available)- a full-length NFL game will have a wide availability online in the United States.

The Flash deal is notable because NBC used a different technology - Microsoft Silverlight - to provide live video streaming of the Beijing Olympics.

NBC originally had said it would use Flash. An Adobe press release on the NFL deal gets in a dig, noting that Flash is available on most desktop computers and "will enable fans to access NFL games on the Web without having to download additional software."

To get Olympics video, users had to first download Silverlight.

Plenty of extras come with the NFL broadcasts. Fans can get in-game highlights, live stats, a live blog and different camera angles.

One problem could be the demand for the product. Some of those who watched Thursday's Giants-Redskins season opener reported they were placed in line "due to overwhelming demand." Some also noted "jumpy" video, and the lack of a full-screen mode.