MPEG4 vs MPEG2

[humdinger70]

What advantages will MPEG4 have over MPEG2 (for HDTV) once it's in use? :lurk:

[mjones73]

MPEG 4 is a newer standard that can compress a video stream to a smaller size them MPEG 2 can while still obtaining the same PQ. It will lower the bandwidth needed per channel to in turn allow more channels.

[jco]

What advantages will MPEG4 have over MPEG2 (for HDTV) once it's in use? :lurk:
Is MPEG4 even a possibility for ATSC HDTV? Doesnt seem to me that the compression algorithms can be changed without changing the HDTV standards because you would need MPEG4 decoders in the existing tuners/TVs.
JCO

[hd4me2]

Is MPEG4 even a possibility for ATSC HDTV? Doesnt seem to me that the compression algorithms can be changed without changing the HDTV standards because you would need MPEG4 decoders in the existing tuners/TVs.
JCO

I sincerely hope it's possible since D* is going to MPEG4 encoding with its new satellites. They will be replacing the old HD STB's

[mjones73]

Is MPEG4 even a possibility for ATSC HDTV? Doesnt seem to me that the compression algorithms can be changed without changing the HDTV standards because you would need MPEG4 decoders in the existing tuners/TVs.
JCO

Cable and sat companies aren't held to the OTA ATSC standard, hence the reason they are starting to adopt MPEG 4. ATSC will surely still be held at the current MPEG 2 standards for quite some time due to the FCC being involved and of course the fact there are a number of ATSC tuners already out in the wild.

[dswan34]

http://www.apple.com/macosx/tiger/h264.html

This is apple mpeg4 part 10 codec. Its coming in quicktime 7. Has already been accepted as a codec for HD-DVD and blue ray. It could have a very big impact some even talking about a itunes like video store/service from apple using H.264 video.

[strangersonmyflight]

As for how abrupt the transition from mpeg2 to mpeg4 algorithms might be, it entirely depends on the particular stb, afaik. If the stb supports firmware and software updates through a communication link and the hardware itself can handle the increased computational load of mpeg4, then it is entirely possible the stb will continue to be functional. If not, then yes, it will have to be replaced. As it works out, this might be a boon for satellite services such as DirecTV (as continued support is inherently part of the service they provide) while "point-of-sale" stb's for OTA may more likely suffer the fate of replacement before mpeg4 becomes possible. That could turn out to be a problem for ota HDTV, if you try introducing an additional format that some boxes work with and some don't (i.e., it may never happen). Ironically, it will benefit DirecTV, that which needs better compression performance, anyway, if it has any hope of competing with less bandwidth challenged providers. Now, if they just piss away all that liberated bandwidth by adding more channels of programming, then they will have pretty much gone nowhere wrt video quality (i.e., it was all for the Benji's).

[intrac]

It is my understanding that MPEG-4 will be used by Cable & Satellite systems to get increased compression to carry more DTV channels.

This is not a requirement for OTA where only the local channel is being broadcast.

[lsmd69]

Does this mean no more macro-blocking???

[strangersonmyflight]

Any codec will degrade to macro-blocking if starved enough by data rate limits. What does this mean for "real practice"? It means, we shall have to see, but it is by no means immune to macroblocking any more than mpeg2 is.