[M4IF Discuss] Moving from MPEG-4 on to VP5?

[Craig Birkmaier]

http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-843565.html
Moving from MPEG-4 on to VP5?
By Gwendolyn Mariano
Special to ZDNet News
February 22, 2002, 1:25 PM PT
Video-compression provider On2 Technologies is taking aim at MPEG-4, 
releasing an update of its own technology, known as VP5, as companies 
wrangle over proposed licensing fees for the emerging digital video 
standard.
New York-based On2 said VP5 is up to a 50 percent improvement over 
its VP4 technology, which supports RealNetworks' RealPlayer and 
RealSystem iQ to enable consumers to view digital video. The company 
said VP5 is designed to handle real-time compression of live TV 
broadcasts, including sports and action footage. For instance, if 
viewers were to watch an ice skater on a PC, the new codec would 
eliminate any white splotches on the screen as well as any shadowing, 
or ghost-like images, the company said.
Codecs are pieces of software that are used to compress large video 
files into smaller ones so that they can be sent over the Web, 
wireless devices, set-top boxes and electronic gaming devices.
"The timing (of VP5) is significant because codecs keep getting 
better," said Ross Rubin, senior analyst at Jupiter Media Metrix. VP5 
"may well be the best one out there, partly because it's the newest 
one. But I don't necessarily think it's sustainable. It's just 
important to be competitive...(and) we've got to ensure that the 
video gets the amount of bandwidth it needs all the time for a good 
video experience."
The launch of VP5 comes as media companies are weighing a 
controversial licensing plan for MPEG-4, a digital media format that 
is being positioned as a new industry standard. Under the plan, put 
forward by MPEG LA, licensees would pay 25 cents each for MPEG-4 
products such as decoders and encoders, with fees capped at $1 
million a year for each licensee. It also suggests charging a 
per-minute use fee with no cap, equivalent to 2 cents for each hour 
encoded.
Tech heavyweight Apple Computer, a major MPEG-4 backer, quickly 
rejected the proposed licensing terms, previewing but refusing to 
release new QuickTime products that support the standard until a new 
deal is reached. In addition, the Internet Streaming Media Alliance 
(ISMA), a standards body, is asking MPEG LA to open the proposed 
licensing plan to industry review and discussion. The ISMA is 
concerned that the royalty model MPEG LA has outlined will not foster 
the development of MPEG-4.
On2 also opposed the new licensing plan and sent a letter to the 
ISMA, proposing to make its codec an alternative to MPEG-4 and 
promising to make it available at no charge. Last year, On2 released 
an open-source version of its VP3.2 video-compression technology.
Rubin said On2 is not the first company to make claims that its codec 
is close to true broadcast quality. He said Microsoft, for instance, 
has claimed that its latest codec will be able to deliver near 
DVD-quality in a minimal broadband capacity. He added that the 
quality of service available to provide these streams is the key 
ingredient because "once you achieve a certain amount of Internet 
congestion, you have to degrade the signal or it becomes choppy."
Still, On2 is wagering that VP5 will let people watch true 
broadcast-quality videos. The company said VP5 is more efficient and 
delivers higher quality at lower bit rates than MPEG-2, MPEG-4, Real 
8, Windows Media 8 and Apple QuickTime 5. On2 said the download and 
streaming versions of VP5 are available through the RealPlayer at its 
Web site.
"Other codecs make an adaptation--they actually change the video and 
then compress it so it doesn't look the same," said On2 CEO Douglas 
McIntyre. "We don't do anything to the original...(VP5) gives back 
full resolution to the quality of the original stuff."