MPEG-5 Part 2 LCEVC (Low Complexity Enhancement Video Coding) has been promoted to MPEG/ISO final draft international standard.
MPEG-5 Part 2 LCEVC enhances the compression performance of any base video codec (e.g., AVC, HEVC, AV1, EVC or VVC) and offers improved picture quality at up to 40% lower bitrates for both live and VOD delivery. It also provides a 2-4x improvement in encoding computational efficiency. LCEVC enables greener and more cost-effective video delivery workflows whilst maintaining compatibility with the device ecosystem of the enhanced codec. It empowers services to improve quality-of-experience for viewers without having to duplicate workflows or wait for device replacement cycles.
V-Nova, which co-chaired the standard’s development, contributed to the foundation technology on which it is built.
Guido Meardi, CEO and co-founder at V-Nova, says, “LCEVC is poised to immediately deliver a step-change in usage and profitability to a host of existing services. The standard has broad applicability, we are already seeing great traction and are committed to ensuring rapid adoption.”
In live sports delivery when serving millions of concurrent streams to all kinds of devices, LCEVC provides greater reliability, reducing buffering events and increasing quality. It also helps to minimise latency, facilitating new business models such as betting and other real-time interactivity applications.
“As a leading global sports and e-sports media destination, we are extremely excited by the game-changing opportunities presented by MPEG-5 LCEVC,” said Luis Vicente, Group CEO Eleven Sports. “It will change the world of sports, media & entertainment video delivery, providing a better service at a substantially lower cost. I am also convinced that it will play an important role in our journey towards zero latency. We are definitely looking to become an early adopter.”
There is also interest from social media and e-sports platforms, and video conferencing.