MPEG Digital Audio-and Video-Coding Standards
his issue of IEEE Sig­ nal Processing Maga­ zine is dedicated to the audioand-video compression tech­ nology that forms the basis of the in­ ternational MPEG standards. The efficient digital representation of audio/visual signals has been the subject of considerable research over the past 20 years. Digital audioand video-coding technology has devel­ oped into a mature field and diverse products have been developed-tar­ geted for a wide range of emerging audio/visual applications, such as video on d e m a n d , digital TV/HDTV broadcasting, and mul­ timedia image/video a n d audio/speech database services. With the increased commercial in­ terest in sophisticated audio/visual communications, the need for inter­ national standards for compression technology arose. Commercially, international standardization of audio/visual communication systems and proto­ cols aims to serve two important purposes: interoperability and economy of scale. Interworking be­ tween video communication equip­ ment from different vendors is a desirable feature for users and equipment manufacturers alike. It increases the attractiveness for buy­ ing and using video communication equipment because it enables large­ scale, international audio and video data exchange via storage media or via communication networks. An