With the launch of the 4K TV system in South Korea in February 2017, MPEG-H Audio will be the first next-generation audio system used over the air for television broadcasts based on ATSC 3.0. Broadcast professionals and consumers will benefit from the capabilities of MPEG-H, including interactive audio - consumers will have the ability to adjust the sound mix to their preferences, for example choosing between different commentators in a sporting event - and immersive sound. Comparable to moving from stereo to surround sound, MPEG-H adds 3D audio components to deliver a truly immersive experience.
Media Excel’s UHD HEVC Encoder, designed for premium broadcast, cable and satellite, mobile and OTT/TVE services now also offers MPEG-H Audio software from Fraunhofer IIS with all its advanced audio features, adding to an already innovative encoder that meets and exceeds the rigorous demands required for UHD HEVC broadcasting.
“The integration of MPEG-H Audio software for Media Excel’s encoder, represents another milestone in our continued efforts to deliver high quality implementations of advanced audio technologies to the evolving media world. MPEG-H Audio will enable professional broadcasters in South Korea to deliver premium content to end-users with next-generation audio features,” says Robert Bleidt, Division General Manager at Fraunhofer USA.
MPEG-H Audio is also part of the A/342 audio candidate standard for ATSC 3.0. The Korean TTA standard “Transmission and Reception for Terrestrial UHD TV Broadcasting Service” is based on ATSC 3.0 and specifies MPEG-H Audio as the sole audio codec for the Korean system. MPEG-H Audio enables the delivery of streaming and TV audio at comparably low bit rates in a cost-effective manner for broadcasters and streaming services. The integration of MPEG-H by Media Excel is destined to push TV broadcast in South Korea to a new level with the interactive and immersive features.
“Media Excel strives to deliver premium video quality and products by developing and integrating the most advanced technologies for our customers. We are pleased to announce the integration of the MPEG-H Audio software for our UHD HEVC Encoder, which will allow users to experience immersive and interactive sound through live television programming,” says Nikos Kyriopoulos, Product Director at Media Excel.
Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Austin, Texas, Media Excel develops software solutions for real-time multiscreen video encoding and transcoding. The company specializes in the development of real-time video encoding, decoding and transcoding software to distribute video over IP networks via appliance and cloud deployment models.
www.mediaexcel.com | www.iis.fraunhofer.de/tvaudio
