[M4IF Discuss] Apple settles MPEG-4 dispute?

[Craig Birkmaier]

http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-932224.html
Apple settles MPEG-4 dispute?
By Joe Wilcox
Special to ZDNet News
June 4, 2002, 1:35 PM PT
Apple Computer on Tuesday released a public preview of QuickTime 6, 
signaling the possible end of a heated dispute between the computer 
maker and a licensing group that controls the use of MPEG-4 media 
technology.
The computer maker took the unusual step of releasing the software in 
absence of a final licensing agreement with MPEG LA, a licensing body 
representing 18 patent holders that have claims on underlying MPEG-4 
technology, a next-generation compression format for video and audio.
"The licensing stuff is getting worked out," Apple CEO Steve Jobs 
said in an interview Tuesday. Every 'i' is not dotted and every 't' 
is not crossed, but it's getting there. I have a lot of confidence it 
will. This is too important not to get worked out."
Jobs said he believed the MPEG-4 licensing issues "will be worked 
out" by the time QuickTime 6 is officially released later this summer.
Jobs emphasized that MPEG-4 would be vital to more broadly opening up 
streaming of audio or video on the Web and giving consumers more 
choice. Right now, much of the streaming is tied to proprietary 
codecs used by Apple, RealNetworks or Microsoft.
"MPEG-2 still delivers the best video quality around," Jobs said. "It 
is the gold standard. It is the world standard...The same group that 
created MPEG-2, created MPEG-4, which is the next, new international 
standard for digital video, for streaming, and for other uses. It 
delivers video quality as good as MPEG-2 at about a third less the 
bit rate."
MPEG LA confirmed that a final license had yet to be hammered out and 
said the QuickTime release indicated faith on Apple's part that the 
licensing terms would be acceptable.
"We don't have any new information on the licensing, and we hope that 
we'll have final terms sometime this summer," said Larry Horn, vice 
president of licensing and business development for MPEG LA. "That 
being said, Apple's announcement shows great confidence that a 
reasonable license from all the various patent holders will be 
available."
MPEG-4 is the successor to the technologies that spawned the MP3 
audio explosion. Like most current media formats, its audio and video 
technologies aim to condense large digital packages into small files 
that can be easily transmitted online. But the hype around the 
technology focuses on its potential to give video itself the kind of 
interactivity now found only in Web sites and video games.
Hoping to bank on this interest for patent holders, MPEG-4 in January 
proposed imposing a per-minute charge on streaming, a requirement 
that Apple and other potential MPEG-4 adopters consider too costly. 
Apple unveiled the new version of its streaming media software 
featuring MPEG-4 technology in February, but it delayed the version's 
release because of the licensing dispute. RealNetworks also has 
raised concerned about the licensing plan.
The proposed terms include a one-year grace period from the time the 
program starts and covers uses before the launch of the license. 
Industry sources said they expected the final licensing agreement to 
mirror those terms.
Under pressure
One prominent MPEG-4 figure noted that MPEG LA is under pressure to 
offer competitive licensing terms, and that pressure may have helped 
reassure Apple that it could release the QuickTime software before 
the final license.
"MPEG LA has been talking to many potential licensees, and they're 
taking comments from the market very seriously," said Rob Koenen, 
chairman of the MPEG Requirements Group. "They're looking at this as 
a product that they have to sell, and the price has to be right."
Apple plans to release QuickTime 6 with Jaguar, the next version of 
Mac OS X, in late summer. QuickTime 6 would be the first Mac OS X 
media player to support MPEG-4.
Currently, only Apple and Microsoft offer Mac OS X media players. But 
Microsoft's media player only works as a standalone or with the 
Internet Explorer 5.1 browser. Windows Media Player for Mac OS X is 
not compatible with rival browsers such as AOL Time Warner's Netscape 
6.
RealNetworks has committed to releasing a Mac OS X version of its 
media player, but it has yet to do so.
"The ISMA (Internet Streaming Media Alliance) is pleased that 
industry support for MPEG-4 remains strong, as is evidenced by 
Apple's latest announcement," said ISMA President Tom Jacobs. "The 
ISMA membership continues to work toward interoperable approaches for 
transporting and viewing rich media, and we believe that MPEG-4 is a 
superb content choice. We look forward to MPEG-LA soon publishing 
final licensing terms, and the ISMA has high expectations that 
amenable terms for all will be reached."
Tuesday's release of the QuickTime 6 beta could be viewed as a 
pre-emptive strike against Microsoft, which is expected this summer 
to offer a test version of its next-generation digital media client 
and server software, code-named Corona. Microsoft has not yet 
committed to supporting MPEG-4, working instead on its own 
proprietary codecs and streaming technologies.
More importantly, Microsoft does not plan to initially offer a Corona 
player for the Mac when the technology debuts later this year.
"We'll focus on other platforms like the Mac primarily to ensure 
Windows Media content playback," said Jonathan Usher, director of the 
Windows Digital Media Division at Microsoft. "There will not be a 
separate Corona player in that time frame."
Usher said he "can't comment" about whether Microsoft would release a 
Corona player for the Mac. "Our focus right now for the Corona time 
frame is Windows XP and other versions of Windows."
News.com's Paul Festa contributed to this report.
-- 
Regards
Craig Birkmaier
Pcube Labs