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- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
I am a proud MPEG member since the Warsaw meeting (112).
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
Every three months, 400+ engineers travel across the world to sit together and work on new technologies. It is an incredibly inspiring environment. And despite popular belief, it is much more than audio and video. It is a source of inspiration and collaboration. This can be seen in the MPEG-G effort. This effort grew from the observation of a need and the availability of expertise in the whole spectrum of data compression, management, and transport. Although I have always been a video man (even in high school already), I am glad that MPEG is open to widening its’ scope and sharing its’ expertise to other domains. Hell, we were even discussing syringe production last meeting :-). We have the process to create an ISO standard, the experience, and the knowledge. We should use these for much more than video and audio.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
MPEG is everywhere in people’s lives:
- It allows us all to make a nice video (even 4K) with our smartphone and send it to our loved ones at the other side of the world within seconds. Which comes in handy when you attend an MPEG meeting ;-).
- Additionally: DASH. It allowed MPEG to actually offer state-of-the-art performance across the complete streaming chain. Streaming, the basis of current multimedia consumption (Netflix, Youtube, Amazon Prime,…).
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
Given that MPEG is more and more company-driven and thus more dynamic, it is hard for academia to set up long-term research projects (e.g. for video compression) and hence to do research within the MPEG environment. However, newer initiatives (which are still in unproven territory, revenue-wise, and thus less of interest to companies) such as MPEG-I and MPEG-G are for sure very interesting from a research point of view.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
Confusing as it can be (especially in the beginning), it is an amazing feeling to meet on a regular basis with experts in your field and to work together with them to improve (or even design from scratch) standards. The processes are sometimes a bit complex and slow, but as proven during the evolution of MPEG-G they are necessary and provide excellent results.
- Are you happy with MPEG standards?
I sincerely am. It is amazing what MPEG standards have enabled in the past 3 decades. A downside however is the whole struggle we have with patents and licensing. As you stated many times before, the HEVC debacle has cast a shadow over everything with the name MPEG (from a license point of view). But I see them as “growing pains” which will in the end be solved, one way or another.
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
From a compression and data exchange point of view, they clearly are. To be honest, I was “scared” when the AV1 efforts started, but now I’m much more relaxed. They too proof how hard it is to get a group of companies/institutes aligned and to come up with a decent standard. And as I mention to people who are not aware of MPEG, which standard organism can claim that they are supported by such a wide set of companies and universities: Philips, Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, Qualcomm, Sharp, Broadcom, Tencent, Mediatek, Microsoft, Technicolor, Fraunhofer, Intel, Apple, Huawei, KDDI, Ericsson, EPFL, …
- What do you expect from MPEG in the future?
- As I stated in point two: more and new domains where we can help with the storage and processing of large amounts of data.
- And a second path, based on MPEG-5 baseline, where we provide standards that are based on “older” but still very good and proven technologies. Many technologies (such as CABAC) are incredibly good and offer performance that is almost on-par with current evolutions. This could be a backup-track if something goes really south with VVC licensing (which I sincerely hope it will not).
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
Yes I have been an MPEG member since 2002. My first standardization contribution was made in Sept. 2001. The first JVT meeting I attended was JVT#5 in Oct. 2002, in Geneva, Switzerland. The first MPEG meeting I attended was MPEG#65 in July 2003, in Trondheim, Norway.
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
The useful standards created by MPEG make MPEG special. In particular, the media compression and systems standards created by MPEG that are used everywhere in people’s lives all over the world make MPEG special.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
Again, the media compression and systems standards created by MPEG that are used everywhere in people’s lives all over the world are the most important MPEG impact.
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
Yes, definitely. I myself learnt a lot from research papers published by MPEG participants on MPEG topics when I was a graduate student working hard to earn my PhD. Not to mention the research and standardization work I did since after I graduated.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
My MPEG experience has almost been my entire career life so far. In 2003, my boss once asked me what I would like to be in five years. I said that I would like to become an expert who can make cool comments and have impacts to standards development as those people at JVT/MPEG meetings. After just a couple of years, my boss told me, “you have already reached that status”. That was an amazing moment to me! During the past 18+ years of standardization work, I have gradually learnt lots of technical and non-technical knowledge and skills, including even English listening and speaking skills, as well ways to handle all kinds of situations people encounter in standardization, related or not related to my own proposals, approaches to drive the progress of a particular topic or an entire project, methods to chair including dealing with contentious topics as the chair, etc. If one asks me what is the toughest thing in standardization, I would answer without hesitation that that would be chairing a standardization group while driving to the right direction.
- Are you happy with MPEG standards?
I am very happy with those MPEG standards that get deployed, particularly those to which I have contributed .
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
Many MPEG standards are the right choice for the relevant industry segments.
- What do you expect from MPEG in the future?
Although some standards generated by MPEG, same as other SDOs, may not be widely deployed, I expect MPEG to continue its existence and its important role in creating relevant and useful industrial standards for media compression, media systems, and beyond.
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
Above 10 years
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
For past 30 years I think MPEG has concentrated what technologies MPEG can provide. However, we need to concentrate on how the technologies are to be provided for the next 30 years. You know well what the difference between what and how. Our technologies, i.e., compression efficiency are effective and well performing when the performances of hardware are low. However, current hardware are good enough and future hardware will be too much better. MPEG can not catch up with the hardware as products.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
Existing and potential experiences for success
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
Absolutely YES.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
I had great experiences. It was my first participation to MPEG in 82nd Shenzhen meeting where I proposed MPEG-RoSE concept. We extended the concept to MPEG-V (published 3rd version). And my second challenge was User Description (published 2nd version)
- Are you happy with MPEG standards?
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
Best choice.
- What do you expect from MPEG in the future?
I (and many people in the industry) expect a quantum jump for the next 30 years.
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
I have been a member for about 20 years, joining a couple of years after MPEG started its charter. At first, I was mostly involved with the Audio group development but later expanded into other groups including the Video group.
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
As an audio expert, the MPEG work was particularly important for me since it was the first standardization body to address general high-quality audio coding (based on perceptual models) at relatively low rates.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
The MPEG specifications fulfilled a clear industry need, they were referred by a number of standard organizations (see for example ITU-R, DVB, etc.), and created the basis for very successful consumer electronic products. The timing was “perfect” in that the MPEG work leveraged new technology advances at the time (computer power, digital signal processing development, psychoacoustics modeling, internet availability, etc.) and enabled the leap towards a new digital media era.
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
I think the discussions within the MPEG group(s) were stimulating from the research point of view. Merging different approaches from different companies/national bodies certainly provided a wide perspective on what was currently available and what was possible.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
The first meeting I attended was a particularly significant meeting, not just from a personal point of view, but also from the historical point of view. During the work of the MPEG audio group we defined a major building block, the hybrid filterbank, the backbone of what became later the MP3 format. Now everyone is familiar with MP3 but, at the time, it was a stab in the dark and everyone (or almost everyone) considered this effort doomed at the start.
- Are you satisfied with MPEG standards?
My work within the ISO/IEC MPEG continued through the years and, thanks to the incredible friends and colleagues I met through MPEG, I enjoyed a number of successes including leading the development of the (then-) newly conceived MPEG Advanced Audio Coding (AAC).
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
In general, the checks and balances built into the MPEG standardization process are a guaranty that the resulting technology specifications are well thought through, and, depending on the application, provide a solid basis for new products.
- What do you expect from MPEG in the future?
ISO/IEC MPEG has had and continues to have a major role in the development of media technology and I feel very fortunate to have contributed to the work of this community.
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
Yes
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
Best engineers and researcher gather and make the best video standards.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
Lots of appliances, SW, HW have used MPEG.
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
I have worked for MPEG4, AVC.
- Are you satisfied with MPEG standards?
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
Yes
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
A venue where top experts, mainly from AV digital multimedia, get together and strive to find the best technical solutions in response to the evolving AV digital multimedia industry needs.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
Video compression standards.
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
Yes and more specifically in the field of video compression.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
Positive and a cornerstone of my long professional career.
- Are you happy with MPEG standards?
Specifically happy with MPEG1, MPEG2 & AVC standards because of the great impact they had, as transformative technologies, on the whole digital video market and businesses.
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
AV multimedia landscape is changing and it is no longer dominated by telecom or broadcast industries. Moreover, with HEVC related patent ownership issues making the MPEG choice is not as easy as it used to be.
- What do you expect from MPEG in the future?
Continue data compression related activities with early time to the market and a clear licensing terms and policies (currently not in the MPEG or ITU-T scope).
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
MPEG member when I worked with C-Cube, OPTA then Optavision.
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
Its a group of Scientists and Engineers that have gone out of their way to contribute.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
MPEG Impact forced the world-industry to pay attention to standards and to follow them.
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
Yes, I do but this could be set up by guidelines hopefully ISO standards for companies to follow.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
My MPEG Experience, I was right in the middle of it at C-CUBE, OPTA, Futuretel, and Innovacom. I could not have been closer
- Are you satisfied with MPEG standards?
Yes, but they are in need of being “FUTURE PROOFED”, that would mean anticipating the next edition of technology to be attached.
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
The current MPEG standards are the beginning and the main push for the next generation. We should also investigate the need for specialized MPEG for instrumentation, which could include 3D projective systems, immersive training systems, and so on.
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
I was an MPEG active member for about 5 years (1991-95)
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
The methodology of work and the group ambiance made MPEG special.
I started to be involved in standardization activities in 1968. The organization was ITU-CCITT, first Commission Special D and later on Commission XVIII, and the topic was digital communication networks. The group counted several hundred participants, the work was formal and cautious, tightly linked to research since digital techniques were new and evolved simultaneously. Although the context was to some extent similar, MPEG was different in all aspects. The participants made a bunch of young people, from all continents, able and willing to work day and night during meetings. In spite of fierce competition on some issues at some times, there was a team spirit, a willingness to cooperate, share and achieve mutual progress towards a common goal. In fact, the ambiance was characterized by freedom, speed and friendship.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
Rationalization of multimedia techniques, contribution to the emergence of practical and economically viable schemes and acceleration of the transition to the digital society.
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
MPEG has stimulated research by setting ambitious yet realistic objectives and providing feedback from real world experiments and from industrial developments.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
The experience I remember best concerns MPEG2 and digital television.
For several years, I was an adviser to the technical director of the television operator Canal+. By keeping him informed of the achievements and perspectives of MPEG, explaining and demonstrating the potential benefits, I and some colleagues succeeded in convincing him to move to digital techniques and Canal+ was the first operator to broadcast MPEG TV in Europe.
- Are you happy with MPEG standards?
Yes, for TV and sound.
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
In view of the wide acceptance and deployments of MPEG standards throughout the world, I think so.
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
I have participated in JCT-VC work on behalf of CSR.
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
Involvement of “field engineers” in development of standards.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
AVC/H.264
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
Because MPEG is an independent body, therefore research is expected to be unbiased. In private companies any research for open publication is commonly biased (or aligned to the company’s strategical targets).
On the other hand in academical circles the research on new standards is not always recognized as “academic”. Therefore such research is conducted by graduate students.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
According to my experience in JCT-VC, not always decision making was fair (or i failed to grasp a rationale for accepting a concrete decision and rejecting the alternatives). Therefore I finally abandoned JCT-VC.
- Are you satisfied with MPEG standards?
AVC/H.264 is a success. However, patent issues of HEVC stopped wide adoption of this standard. Besides, HEVC have dozens flaws, I elaborated all drawbacks of HEVC in my tutorial on HEVC (https://app.box.com/s/rxxxzr1a1lnh7709yvih)
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
Due to lack of alternative, MPEG video compression standards is the right choice. For example, AV1 supplies apparently better coding efficiency but it’s overcomplicated to be widely accepted in devices (like phones) in near future.
- What do you expect from MPEG in the future?
Hybrid Coding approach has been completely exploited. To get a gain of several percents in coding efficiency one need increases the complexity several times. We need other approaches.
- Are you or have you been an MPEG member?
Yes, an active member and contributor since 2002.
- What do you think makes MPEG special?
Its diversity, both in representation (people) and the diversity of technical subjects of the standards MPEG creates.
- What do you think is the most important MPEG impact?
Changing the way how media and entertainment content is authored and distributed, making it easily accessible in different environments and on a variety of devices.
- Do you think MPEG is a good conduit for research?
MPEG technologies benefit greatly from incorporating latest research results and making them accessible to the industry. At the same time, the technologically-diverse collaborative environment that MPEG created has a strong influence on the industry and informs on future research topics. However, I am not sure whether this would be enough to claim that MPEG is a conduit for the research, which may require new skill sets, and, most important, investments to make it happen.
- Can you comment on your MPEG experience?
I found MPEG to be an open and welcoming environment that can accommodate the needs of various industries and different categories of participants. Every contributor – big or small, a company representative or an individual highly skilled in certain domain of knowledge can be heard, and new ideas usually find their way to be discussed and considered at their face value.
- Are you happy with MPEG standards?
Yes, with a caveat that MPEG, being a part of ISO, is bound by ISO Directives and rules that do not always make it easier to do the job right and within the reasonable time frame. [I am trying to be polite and considerate.]
- Do you think MPEG standards are the right choice?
I think that most MPEG standards are the right choice for the right period in time. Things change all the time, some standards evolve and stay current, some standards become outdated and even forgotten – these are normal parts of life. Wide industry attention and popularity of MPEG name [being now a household brand] is what undoubtedly helps MPEG be seen as the right choice.
- What do you expect from MPEG in the future?
I think that in order to stay current and relevant MPEG needs to strike the right balance between staying focused in certain areas of expertise and be open to new ideas and developments. It’s not as easy as it might seem, but this is what made MPEG successful to date.
(I’d loosely define MPEG core area of expertise as “media content” – coding, production, data formats, delivery mechanisms, tools, etc. This is a vast area of expertise, which may also produce results that are applicable in other industry domains, and it may sometimes be a distraction. However, staying focused is important – too much diversification in technical subjects may dilute the value of MPEG standards.)
