Looks like Toshiba has some MPEG-4 encoder reworking to do...
Format Backed By Microsoft Rivals Gets Nod From Standards Group
02/11/98
Dow Jones Online News
(Copyright (c) 1998, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
CUPERTINO, Calif. -(Dow Jones)- The International Standards Organization adopted a plan Wednesday to use Apple Computer Inc.'s QuickTime File Format as the starting point for the development of an advanced interactive multimedia application using the MPEG -4 standard.
Apple (AAPL), International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), Netscape Corp. (NSCP), Oracle Corp. (ORCL), Silicon Graphics Inc. (SGI) and Sun Microsystems Inc. (SUNW) all recommended QuickTime's file format because of its ability to stream across different network protocols, its support for all forms of digital media and its flexible capabilities as a file format.
MPEG -4 is an emerging digital media standard currently being defined by ISO's Moving Picture Experts Group that will allow users to select, view and manipulate audio, video and other forms of digital content. With the adoption of QuickTime as the starting point for MPEG -4, all digital media content can be authored in a common file format that supports real-time video and audio streaming. This digital stream can then be delivered over the Internet, corporate networks or broadcast directly into the home.
The QuickTime format will allow most existing hardware, software and digital content to work seamlessly with the next-generation version of MPEG . Currently, MPEG -2 is the standard for entertainment quality video, audio and is the format of choice for digital versatile disc, or DVD, and digital video broadcasting, or DVB.
Most experts say that standardization of the MPEG -4 standard isn't expected until next February, but one analyst recently said the first MPEG -4 implementations will appear before then in interactive games distributed on the Internet. Target markets for MPEG -4 products range from personal computers to set-top boxes and mobile devices.
Copyright (c) 1998 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. |
