HEVC

HEVC is a video compression standard developed by the Joint Collaborative Team on Video Coding (JCT-VC), a collaboration between the Video Coding Experts Group (VCEG) and the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG). The development of HEVC involved the participation of various organizations, including Apple Inc., Google, Microsoft, and Samsung Electronics. The standard was designed to provide twice the compression efficiency of its predecessor, H.264/MPEG-4 AVC, while also supporting higher resolutions, such as 4K resolution and 8K resolution, and higher frame rates, such as those used in Blu-ray and Ultra HD Blu-ray.

Introduction

HEVC is designed to be a highly efficient video codec, capable of compressing video data while maintaining high video quality. The development of HEVC was influenced by the work of various researchers, including Gary Sullivan, who served as the chair of the JCT-VC, and Thomas Wiegand, who played a key role in the development of the standard. HEVC has been widely adopted by various industries, including the film industry, the television industry, and the gaming industry, with companies such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and YouTube using the standard to deliver high-quality video content to their users. The standard has also been used in various devices, including smartphones from Huawei and Xiaomi, and set-top boxes from Cisco Systems and Arris International.

History

The development of HEVC began in 2010, with the formation of the JCT-VC, a joint committee between the VCEG and the MPEG. The committee was tasked with developing a new video compression standard that would provide improved compression efficiency and support for higher resolutions and frame rates. The development of HEVC involved the participation of various experts from around the world, including researchers from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), and Technische Universität Berlin (TU Berlin). The standard was finalized in 2013, with the publication of the first edition of the HEVC standard by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The development of HEVC was also influenced by the work of various organizations, including the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) and the Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) project.

Technical Overview

HEVC is based on a number of advanced technologies, including intra prediction, inter prediction, and transform coding. The standard uses a hierarchical block structure, with larger blocks being divided into smaller blocks, known as coding units (CUs), prediction units (PUs), and transform units (TUs). HEVC also uses a number of advanced tools, including sample adaptive offset (SAO) and adaptive loop filter (ALF), to improve the compression efficiency and video quality. The standard has been implemented in a number of software and hardware platforms, including the x264 and x265 encoders, and the NVIDIA GeForce and AMD Radeon graphics processing units (GPUs). The development of HEVC was also influenced by the work of various researchers, including Kai-Uwe Barthel and Sachin Deshpande, who have published numerous papers on the topic.

Features and Advantages

HEVC has a number of features and advantages that make it an attractive choice for video compression. The standard provides twice the compression efficiency of H.264/MPEG-4 AVC, while also supporting higher resolutions and frame rates. HEVC also has a number of advanced features, including scalable video coding (SVC) and multiview video coding (MVC), which allow for the efficient compression of multiple video streams. The standard has been widely adopted by various industries, including the film and television industries, with companies such as Warner Bros. and BBC using the standard to deliver high-quality video content to their users. The standard has also been used in various devices, including cameras from Canon Inc. and Sony Corporation, and media players from Roku, Inc. and Google LLC.

Applications and Adoption

HEVC has been widely adopted by various industries, including the film and television industries, the gaming industry, and the online video industry. The standard has been used in a number of applications, including video on demand (VOD) services, such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, and live streaming services, such as YouTube Live and Facebook Live. HEVC has also been used in various devices, including smartphones from Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics, and set-top boxes from Cisco Systems and Arris International. The standard has been supported by a number of organizations, including the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) and the Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) project. The adoption of HEVC has also been influenced by the work of various researchers, including Jens-Rainer Ohm and Madhukar Budagavi, who have published numerous papers on the topic.

Comparison to Other Codecs

HEVC has been compared to a number of other video codecs, including H.264/MPEG-4 AVC, VP9, and AV1. The standard has been shown to provide improved compression efficiency and video quality compared to H.264/MPEG-4 AVC, while also supporting higher resolutions and frame rates. HEVC has also been compared to VP9, which is an open-source video codec developed by Google. The standard has been shown to provide improved compression efficiency and video quality compared to VP9, while also supporting a wider range of applications and devices. The comparison of HEVC to other codecs has been influenced by the work of various researchers, including Thomas Stockhammer and Wen-Hsiao Peng, who have published numerous papers on the topic. The standard has also been supported by a number of organizations, including the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Category:Video codecs