Sustainability of Digital Formats
Planning for Library of Congress Collections
Sustainability of Digital Formats
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| Introduction | Sustainability Factors | Content Categories | Format Descriptions | Contact | |
| Full name | Information technology -- Coding of audio-visual objects (formal name) MPEG-4, Advanced Video Coding (part 10), High Profile NOTE: this Web page drafted prior to the amendment of the standard to add the four High profiles. Comments welcome. |
| Description | The High Profile of MPEG-4_AVC (from ITU-T H.264) supports 4:2:0 chroma at 8 bits per channel, adaptive macroblock-level switching between 8x8 and 4x4 transform block size, encoder-specified quantization scaling matrices, encoder-specified separate control of the quantization parameter for each chroma component, and monochrome sequences. The Overview and Introduction to the Fidelity Range Extensions states that "the High profile seems to be overtaking the Main profile as the primary choice for broadcast and other entertainment-quality applications." |
| Production phase | Generally a final-state (end-user delivery) format. |
| Relationship to other formats | |
| Subtype of | MPEG-4_AVC |
| Used by | MP4_FF_2_AVC_HP, MPEG-4 File Format, V.2, with AVC, High Profile |
| LC experience or existing holdings | |
| LC preference |
| Disclosure | Open standard. See MPEG-4_AVC. |
| Documentation | See MPEG-4_AVC. This profile is not yet in the formal specification; information may be found in Overview and Introduction to the Fidelity Range Extensions. |
| Adoption | From H.264/MPEG4-AVC Fidelity Range Extensions: Tools, Profiles, Performance, and Application Areas: The High profile "has recently been included
in some important application standards or specifications of industry consortia: • The [European] specifications TS 101 154 and TS 102 005 of DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting) specify HP for satellite, cable, and terrestrial broadcasting using MPEG-2 transport stream or IP, respectively • The HD-DVD specification of the DVD Forum makes HP mandatory for every decoder • The BD specification of the Blu-Ray Disc Association (BDA) also makes HP mandatory for every decoder" See also MPEG-4_AVC. |
| Licensing and patent claims | See MP4_FF_2. |
| Transparency | See MP4_FF_2. |
| Self-documentation | See MP4_FF_2. |
| External dependencies | See MP4_FF_2. |
| Technical protection considerations | See MP4_FF_2. |
| Normal rendering | Good support. |
| Clarity (support for high image resolution) | See MPEG-4_AVC. Depends in part on the level and encoding algorithm selected. The High Profile has the potential to produce greater clarity than MPEG-4_AVC_BP, MPEG-4_AVC_MP, and MPEG-4_AVC_EP at a given picture size and data rate. By the same token, MPEG-4_AVC_HP clarity can be surpassed by MPEG-4_AVC_H10P, MPEG-4_AVC_H422P, and MPEG-4_AVC_H444P. |
| Fidelity (support for high audio resolution) | See MP4_FF_2. |
| Support for multiple sound channels | See MP4_FF_2. |
| Functionality beyond normal video rendering | See MP4_FF_2. |
| Tag type | Value | Note |
| Filename Extension | Pertains to the file format; see MP4_FF_2 | |
| Internet Media Type | Pertains to the file format; see MP4_FF_2 | |
| Magic numbers | Pertains to the file format; see MP4_FF_2 | |
| Profile indicator | Not yet assigned; profile_idc is described as a part of Annex A of Part 10 of the standard, pp. 204-05. | |
| File type brand | See note | Indicated in file wrapper and relates to "brands" defined in ISO_BMFF. Wrapping MPEG-4_AVC bitstreams in MP4_FF_1 (unlikely) would occasion the use of mp41; in MP4_FF_2 (more likely), use mp42. |
| General | From H.264/MPEG4-AVC Fidelity Range Extensions: Tools, Profiles, Performance, and Application Areas: "All four [High] profiles inherit the tool set of the Main profile, and as their common intersection, the High profile (HP) additionally contains all major new tools for improving the coding efficiency. Relative to the Main profile (MP), these tools imply only moderate (if any) increases in complexity both in terms of implementation and computational costs (at the decoder side), as briefly discussed for the case of the 8×8 transform in the previous section. Therefore, the High profile with its restriction to 8-bit video in 4:2:0 chroma format (or optionally in monochrome format) is likely to replace the Main profile for prospective applications of H.264/MPEG4-AVC in typical consumer applications." |
| History |
URLs
Print
From the ISO web site (http://www.iso.ch/ISO/en/):
• ISO/IEC 14496-10:2003 Information technology -- Coding of audio-visual objects -- Part 10: Advanced Video Coding
• ISO/IEC 14496-15:2003 Information technology -- Coding of audio-visual objects -- Part 15: Advanced Video Coding (AVC) file format
URLs
• Overview and Introduction to the Fidelity Range Extensions (http://www.fastvdo.com/spie04/spie04-h264OverviewPaper.pdf)
• H.264/MPEG4-AVC Fidelity Range Extensions: Tools, Profiles, Performance, and Application Areas, available on a fee basis from IEEE (http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/ICIP.2005.1529820)
Print
• Sullivan, Gary J., Pankaj Topiwala, and Ajay Luthra. "Overview and Introduction to the Fidelity Range Extensions." Paper presented at the SPIE Conference on Applications of Digital Image Processing XXVII, Special Session on Advances in the New Emerging Standard: H.264/AVC, August, 2004.
• See MP4_FF_2.
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