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Issue link: https://digital.macdirectory.com/i/1318513
bandwidth requirements of higher definition content (HD, 4K, HDR) as well as data caps/throttling levied by service providers. Netflix has been pushing the performance envelope since the mid-1990s. They were the first to use H.264 and later, the more efficient VP9. The more efficient streaming formats ensure content will stream with little or no buffering--even where wireless service is marginal. Aware of the streaming financial impact for all parties and consumers increasing viewing quality tastes, Germany’s Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute recently released a new, more bandwidth efficient codec (H.266, versatile video coding). The new codec should cut data bandwidth requirements at least in half, compared to today’s commonly used H.265 codec. Apple, Microsoft, Qualcomm, Ericsson, Intel and Huawei were supporting the project which should achieve fast/widespread use--not only because of its obvious bandwidth/cost savings but also because it will be offered using a uniform and transparent licensing model based on the FRAND principle (i.e., fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory). “Nearly all of today’s mobile streaming is HD at 720p and 1080p resolution,” McLennan noted. “New codecs will set the stage for today’s 4K content to be easily delivered to the smartphone shortly and especially when 5G service becomes more widely available.” In the US, AT& T, Verizon and T-Mobile are conducting a serious battle of investment and wordsmanship to deliver eye-blinking low-latency for everything. But they all lag the infrastructure build-out of China, Korea, France, Japan and well … darn near everyone. Carriers tout how many 5G cells/towers they have installed and have running this quarter while 5G conspiracy theory groups brag about how many cells/towers they have destroyed. 5G installations in the US are concentrated in a few large population centers. It is presently live in 24 global markets and is forecast to account for 20 percent of the global connections by 2025 according to the GSMA (Global System for Mobile Communications). When we showed the above to our daughter, she was suddenly less concerned that the soon-to-be introduced iPhone wouldn’t be 5G ready out-of-the-box. The majority of the mobile infrastructure – which has been in place for many years without causing medical ailments – is 4G/LTE backhaul or more simply, the infrastructure between the cell/tower and edge of the network (phone). To deliver end-to-end 5G, AT&T will have to invest tens of billions of dollars – as will the others – to build out their 5G networks in the US. This is on top of their $85B M&E note to buy Times Warner (HBO) and ongoing content investment to stay even close to Netflix, Amazon, Disney.