A new video compression company is claiming it can reduce Ultra HD bitrates down to those used for regular HD services.
The company has operated in near secrecy since the development of Perseus in 2011.
V-Nova has the support of 20 global companies and organisations including Broadcom, the EBU, Hitachi Data Systems, Intel and Sky Italia. The satellite operator has already run a number of tests and looks set to use Perseus to replace JPEG2000 as the compression system used in the delivery of Serie A football matches.
“It’s a codec, but it’s also a very different approach altogether,” said Guido Meardi, CEO & Founder. “We don’t do a lot of the things that are currently the building blocks of the different encoding technologies. There is not a single killer thing, but a continuously hierarchical approach.” Meardi said he had been open with the partners on how the various stages in the technology had been achieved.
“If you look at the original genesis of the codec it was to serve very basic video on the chips of the early 80s. Like the propeller on an aeroplane that’s been refined and refined. People up to the mid-40s got PHDs in propeller design,” said co-founder and executive chairman Eric Achtman. “Late in the 40s all of a sudden the jet engine started and it moves from the front to the back and gives you a far greater degree of efficiency.”
Some backwards compatibility will enable a software download to certain current generation chipsets, allowing it to be used on domestic set-top boxes, as well as tablets and smart phones.
By reducing the bandwidth required to reach mobile devices, YouTube quality video can be delivered to parts of the world with limited spectrum, while those markets that already enjoy 4G signals can view super sharp pictures on the go.
