17 January 2025
Geneva, Switzerland
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 are organizing a joint workshop on
“Future video coding – advanced signal processing, AI and standards” in
Geneva, Switzerland on
17 January 2025 from 14h00 to 18h30 CET. The workshop is collocated with meetings of
ITU-T Study Group 21 “Technologies for multimedia, content delivery and cable television” and meetings of ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 "Coding of audio, picture, multimedia and hypermedia information" and its
MPEG-related WGs. Sessions of the Joint Video Experts Team (
JVET) will also be scheduled at the same venue. The workshop will be held in English and remote participation will be provided.
As ITU-T and ISO/IEC explore the potential for launching a new joint project for the next generation of video coding standardization beyond the capabilities of the Versatile Video Coding (VVC) standard, multiple potential paths forward are emerging. One of the questions to discuss is the role to be played by Artificial Intelligence (AI) such as Machine Learning (ML) and Neural Network (NN) technologies. AI technology emerged prominently in the 2020s, and while it is certain to affect all our lives in many ways, its impact on the near-term future of communication technology remains uncertain.
Modern video technology for widespread mass-market deployment demands approaches that are practical, robust, low-power, and low-cost, as well as having state-of-the-art compression capability. The full processing chain of pre-processing, encoding, storage, transmission, decoding, post-processing, analysis, and repurposing of video content must be considered and must be capable of high-resolution, high frame rate, and high dynamic range. Moreover, tomorrow’s applications for even more immersive 3D and beyond-3D experiences with free viewpoints and photorealistic rendering will present new opportunities and new stress points for media experiences.
Building from previous experiences, the two major standards-setting bodies in the area of video coding and processing technologies, ITU-T SG21 and ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 recognize their responsibility to address this momentous shift in technology. The two organizations have been working very closely and successfully on the development of several generations of video coding technical standards including H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC and H.266/VVC since the turn of the century. The collaboration between ITU-T SG21 and ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 has proven to be highly effective, bringing together cutting-edge research and business needs in a way that advances both technology and industry interest.
Already, the Joint Video Experts Team (JVET) of ITU-T SG21 and
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 have made significant progress in exploring Neural Network-based Video Coding (NNVC) and more conventional compression approaches by developing the enhanced compression model (ECM) and hybrids of NNVC and ECM schemes.
A demonstration on cutting-edge video processing and coding technologies solutions, prototypes and conceptual modules, may be organized. Interested demonstrators should express interest by 20 December 2024. Please contact
tsbevents@itu.int.
Objectives
Looking ahead, ITU-T SG21 and
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 are preparing to begin their next collaboration on a new generation of video codec standards and may begin issuing a formal Call for Evidence and Call for Proposals in 2025. At this pivotal moment, in January 2025 will be the first meeting of the newly established
ITU-T SG21, a consolidation of the ITU-T’s prior SG9 and SG16, together with the co-located meetings of
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 and its MPEG working groups, providing a perfect opportunity to organize a joint workshop to explore the way ahead.
Target audience
Participation in the workshop is free of charge and open to ITU Member States, Sector Members, Associates and Academic Institutions and to any individual from a country that is a member of ITU who wishes to contribute to the work. This includes individuals who are also members of international, regional, and national organizations, but please note that registration to attend either in person or online is mandatory.
Remote Participation: To access the virtual room, connect to our Restricted Virtual Events platform (using your free ITU USER Account used for your registration). The event will be listed with an “OPEN” link to connect to the zoom session. 
