- promotional activities, such as providing links to MPEG-4 related information,
products and services, organizing MPEG-4 tutorials, exhibitions and seminars
- creating a single point of information
- making available (or giving pointers to) software and tools
- providing help in implementing the standard
- facilitating discussions about industrial focus around MPEG-4 Technology
- MPEG-4/Scalable Video Coding (SVC)
- 3DTV
- Addressable Advertising: extension and adoption of cable Labs SCTE -104 for all multimedia
- Simplifying competitive licensing
- Quality of Experience / Quality of Service metrics
- Royalty free DRM initiatives
- IPTV ecosystem
- Ultra HD (7680x4320)
- MPEG/High-Performance Video Coding (HVC, H.265)
- MPEG-7 / MPEG-21
** Also, MPEGIF will facilitate discussions among patent holders, with the goal
to encourage the creation of non-discriminatory patent pools. (MPEGIF will
not actually deal with these patents itself.)
MPEGIF strives to achieve its goals through the following 3 working groups:
- Technology & Engineering
- Interoperability & Compliance
- Markting & Communication
- Why should I join?
If you have in interest in MPEG-4, MPEG-7 or MPEG-21, MPEGIF will give you
a platform to discuss issues of common interest, to test the interoperability
of products, and to work on marketing the standard. You will also have the
opportunity to discuss issues with experts. You will identify your company
as a strong supporter of open standards. While MPEGIF will promote MPEG technologies
to the general public, some of the (email) discussions will be for members
only, and some of the resources can be tapped only by members. Being a part of
MPEGIF can also bring you speaking opportunities and you will be able to
join MPEGIF at selected trade shows.
- How much will it cost to join?
The annual fee is US $3,000 for a full membership and US $300 for an associate
membership
MPEGIF is a not-for-profit organization, and this fee will be used to cover
operating expenses, e.g. web site maintenance, maintainig the Logo Qualification
program, marketing efforts, trade show presence, membership management and
secretarial support in running the Forum.
- What is the difference between Full and Associate Membership?
The Full Membership is for most organizations. This type of membership provides
access to all activities in MPEGIF plus voting rights on MPEGIF matters. A
principal member is entitled to one (1) vote at the Annual and General Meetings
and any Committee Meeting in which they participate. The membership fee for
the current year is US $3000.00.
The Associate Membership is reserved for not-for-profit organizations
and institutions. It allows access to the MPEGIF but without the voting privileges.
The membership fee for the current year is US $300.00. Not-for-profits can
also choose to join as a full member, with the right to vote and giving a
stronger financial support of the organization.
- How do I join?
Joining is easy. Follow instructions found at www.MPEGIF.org/join.php
All that is required is
- Signing the Statutes (see link above to download these)
- Filling out an electronic contact details Web Form
- Paying the USD 3000 membership fee (full members) or USD 300 (associate
members).
As soon as we have received your application and the money transfer, we will
send you the password to the member website and other details to get you started
as a member.
- How often are the meetings held?
The Forum meets once a year, by conference call where members are able to discuss the future work of the Forum.
- Where can I find more information on the MPEG Industry
forum?
More information can be found at the MPEG Industry Forum web site http://www.MPEGIF.org
- Who can I contact?
Nicola Wissler, MPEG Industry Forum Coordinator
48377 Fremont Blvd., Suite 117
Fremont, CA 94538
USA
+1 510-492-4028 phone
+1 510-492-4001 fax
nicola.wissler_at_mpegif_dot_org
- What does the MPEG Industry Forum have to do with MPEG(-4)
patents and licensing?
While licensing is not MPEGIF's responsability, MPEGIF has been instrumental
in getting licensing off the ground. Among MPEGIF's membership there are many
(potential) licensees, licensors and parties that are neither, but do have
an interest. Many members are actually licensor and licensee at the same time.
MPEGIF sees the easy access to licenses for essential patents under reasonable
and non-discriminatory terms and conditions as a very important enabler of
wide scale adoption of the MPEG-4 Standard. That is why the Forum has been
facilitating a number of meetings between licensors, licensees and other interested
parties, and will do so in the future when a need is there. MPEGIF will not
directly deal with patents, patent pools and patent licensing. This is strictly
a matter for patent owners to resolve, and falls outside of MPEGIF’s scope.
Among other things, we have discussed in what ways MPEG-4 would be deployed
and which business models licensors could consider to facilitate this deployment
and enable a wide range of business models.
- Do I need a license to build an MPEG-4 Device?
Depending on what you do, you may need a license. Licensors (patent owners)
decide the terms for such licenses, including who needs one. These terms differ
for different applications, and may vary across MPEG-4 Profiles and Levels.
Also, they differ between MPEG-4 Systems, Visual and Audio. If you distribute
a very small number of copies or use MPEG-4 for a small-scale service, you
may sometimes fall under certain thresholds. A definitive answer can only
be obtained from the licensors, and from studying the license itself. See
http://www.MPEGIF.org/patents/index.php
for links to more information.
- And if I only want to create MPEG-4 Software?
The situation for software is essentially the same as for hardware. Sometimes,
licensors make a difference between hardware and (PC) software, as is the
case in, for example, MPEG-4 AAC.
- Can I get a license for MPEG-4 technology from MPEGIF?
No. MPEGIF does not sell licenses or even determine the licensing policies.
It merely acts as a catalyst in getting holders of essential patents to sit
together and establish a portfolio of essential worldwide patents that are
necessary for implementation of the MPEG-4 standard in order to provide all
MPEG-4 users with fair, reasonable, nondiscriminatory access to this technology
under one license. Also, MPEGIF discusses possible licensing principles, applicable
to hardware and software products, to better understand the needs for licensing
in emerging MPEG-4 application domains. see http://www.MPEGIF.org/patents/index.php
to understand the responsabilities and learn more about licensing.
- When will licenses be available?
For more information on licensing, see http://www.MPEGIF.org/patents/index.php.
Most of the licensing issues have been resolved and the general outlines of
the different licenses are known.
