[M4IF Discuss] Impulse Response (Commentary)

[asjabbi]

(from the dsp insider)
***  Impulse Response, by Jeff Bier
MPEG? No, Thanks.
Microsoft and Real Networks must be thrilled.  This February, Apple
immediately followed the unveiling of its QuickTime 6 media player and
QuickTime Broadcaster with an announcement that these products were on
hold indefinitely.  At issue were the proposed licensing terms for
MPEG-4 video, a key component of these products.  These licensing
terms, announced in February, require content providers to pay a
royalty for every second of MPEG-4 video downloaded, streamed over a
network, or distributed on pre-recorded media.  In Apple's view, this
"pay-per-view" fee structure is not a realistic match for the business
realities of streaming video.
Apple's rejection of the proposed licensing terms is particularly
notable because of Apple's long-standing involvement with the MPEG-4
standard.  For example, the MPEG-4 file format is based on Apple's
QuickTime file format.  When one of MPEG-4's loudest cheerleaders
balks at the licensing terms, it suggests that the process of bringing
the standard to market has gone horribly awry.
Indeed, the controversial licensing terms are but one of the
complications awaiting would-be MPEG-4 implementers.  Despite the
common perception that MPEG-4 is a single standard, it is more like a
library of standards.  The video standards alone describe nineteen
"profiles," each with a unique combination of algorithms, resolutions,
and so on.  This complex scheme makes it difficult for system
designers to assess the cost of implementing MPEG-4, particularly the
licensing cost.  The recently announced MPEG-4 video license, for
example, covers only two profiles; implementing other profiles
requires negotiating with up to nineteen patent holders.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding MPEG-4, it has already gained
acceptance in many streaming media applications.  However, as Apple VP
Phil Schiller said in a recent interview, "This is a nascent industry;
we're trying to kick it off, trying to get it started and we don't
need to put roadblocks in the way for people--[these royalties]
would be a major roadblock."  Indeed, one must wonder if the proposed
MPEG-4 royalties will kill the streaming media goose before it lays a
single golden egg.