MPEG issues call for next-generation video compression technology beyond VVC
MPEG held its 153rd meeting, advancing four standards including green metadata and VVC conformance, and issued a draft Call for Proposals for next-generation video compression technology beyond VVC. The meeting also saw progress in audio coding for machines, immersive audio, video-based Gaussian Splat Coding, and LiDAR Coding, as well as a genomics hackathon. These developments signify ongoing efforts in video compression, streaming efficiency, and new media formats.
Key Takeaways
- Draft Call for Proposals (CfP) for post-VVC compression targets runtime-constrained encoding and neural network-based tools.
- ISO/IEC 23001-19 promoted to International Standard, defining green metadata storage in ISOBMFF and delivery via MPEG-DASH.
- Video Coding for Machines (VCM) reached DIS status, with a final standard expected by late 2026.
- MPEG-I immersive audio (6DoF) verification tests concluded with expert listeners awarding an 84/100 'excellent' median rating.
- L3C2 LiDAR coding advanced to Final Draft International Standard, optimizing point cloud compression for real-time spinning sensors.
Why It Matters
The formal move beyond VVC signals the industry's pivot toward 2030-era infrastructure, specifically focusing on AI-augmented compression and 8K/gaming content that VVC does not fully address. The standardization of green metadata reflects a growing regulatory and corporate push for energy-efficient streaming as data center power consumption draws scrutiny. For operators, the progress in Video Coding for Machines suggests a future where surveillance and analytical streams bypass human-centric visual optimizations entirely to save bandwidth. Watch for the final Call for Proposals in July 2026, which will set the technical requirements for the next decade of codec licensing and hardware roadmaps.
Additional Context
The push for post-VVC technology comes as the ecosystem for Versatile Video Coding is still in its early maturity phase. Per Omdia, July 2025, hardware support for VVC decoding has only recently begun appearing in flagship mobile chipsets and premium 8K televisions, mirroring the typical decade-long cycle of codec adoption. While VVC promised roughly 40-50% better efficiency than HEVC, the next generation is expected to rely more heavily on Neural Video Coding (NVC) to find efficiencies that traditional block-based hybrid coding can no longer extract. According to IEEE reports from early 2026, AI-based intra-prediction and loop filtering are now the primary frontiers for these gains. Simultaneously, the focus on 'Green Metadata' aligns with broader European Union sustainability initiatives. Per TechCrunch, February 2026, the European Commission has intensified its review of media service power consumption, putting pressure on streaming providers to implement energy-saving signaling that can adjust display brightness or decoder frequency at the device level. By moving ISO/IEC 23001-19 to an International Standard, MPEG provides a uniform framework that allows Netflix or YouTube to deliver power-contingent streams without proprietary overhead. In the 3D graphics space, the advancement of Gaussian Splatting follows a surge in commercial interest for digital twins and immersive retail. Per VentureBeat, April 2026, several major social media platforms have begun testing Gaussian Splats for high-fidelity avatar rendering because they offer superior photorealism compared to traditional mesh-and-texture point clouds. MPEG’s decision to integrate this into the existing Video-based Point Cloud Compression (V-PCC) framework suggests a preference for backward compatibility with established video decoders rather than creating an entirely new, isolated toolset.
Read full article at mpeg.org
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