While the two frontrunners in the NGA codec stakes are similar in many ways, a comparison of their background and frame of reference gives some interesting insights, writes John Maxwell Hobbs.
The two leading implementations of Next-Generation Audio (NGA) are Dolby AC-4 and MPEG-H 3D audio. Although they are both based around a central set of recommendations from the ITU, they have different origins, advantages, and limitations.
Dolby AC-4 vs MPEG-H 3D Audio: Background
Multi-channel audio broadcasts have been around since 1881, when Clément Alder connected pairs of telephone lines to send stereo audio from the Paris Opera to rooms at the Paris Electrical Exhibition. Between 1890 and 1932, audio programmes using this technology were commercially available in France and England. Since that time, broadcasting has gone from a single audio channel to as many as 22...
You are not signed in
Only registered users can read the rest of this article.
Vertical dramas: Market disruptor or passing fancy?
As studios begin to embrace the potential of vertical micro-dramas, should their rise be dismissed as merely a fad or a profound shift in the production, consumption and gender-bias of global storytelling?
ISE 2026: Thriving on an integrated identity
A show that mixes a vast number of different business areas shouldn’t work, but it does because the underlying technology is finally integrated.
Winter Wonderland: All the tech at the Milano Cortina Olympics
Between first-person-view drones, expanded real-time 360° replays, and a massive virtualised production setup, Milano Cortina 2026 is set to be a major step forward in immersive, scalable, and sustainable Olympic broadcasting.
Creator. Experience. Streaming: The new economies of broadcast AV
As brands, corporates, and creators claim their stake in the content landscape, the boundaries between broadcast and professional AV are dissolving. No longer just a convergence, the broadcast AV landscape is now shaped by new economies of creation, experience, and streaming.
AI and the media revolution: A look ahead to 2026
January has only just come to an end, but we are already looking ahead to the next IBC, which takes place as usual at the Amsterdam RAI in September. In the meantime, Content Everywhere companies are polishing their crystal balls and making predictions about what might lie ahead for the video and streaming industry during the next 12 months.
