What Your Codec Will Cost You: Robert J.L. Moore Talks Avanci视频 Codec Patent Pool Launch

Avanci这是一家总部位于达拉斯的授权公司由马可尼于2017年创立那家专门从事技术专利整合的公司，最近宣布成立 Avanci视频, a new video pool designed to bring order to the video streaming codec licensing scene, establishing a new patent pool to bring AV1, HEVC, VVC, MPEG-DASH, and VP9 under the same licensing platform. The pool launches with more than 25 licensors, among major contributors to the codecs, 比如LG和华为. 访问之前, another patent pool, will continue to license device OEMs for H.264和H.265, while Avanci focuses on content providers.

流媒体特约编辑 1月时 of 流媒体学习中心, recently spoke with Volpe Koenig intellectual property attorney 罗伯特·摩尔关于Avanci视频, 它对行业的影响, and why Marconi chose to expand its Avanci patent portfolio into video codecs. “马可尼意识到，有必要解决内容提供商在使用全套视频编解码器和MPEG-DASH时所承担的风险,摩尔说, "and that's what they're seeking to fill with this."

降低编解码器许可方的风险

Digging deeper into how these patent pools help licensors minimize risk, 摩尔解释说, “如果有一个标准的实施，而这个风险没有得到许可或其他授权, there's a risk that the implementer could get sued. Now, that risk is cabined in many cases by things like the 弗兰德的义务, 或者甚至只是简单的商业考虑——一方不想起诉自己的客户，或者因为害怕被起诉而不想起诉竞争对手. 说了这么多, 有些人会把创建一个标准作为他们的业务，并精确计算他们的投资成本. That risk can be accounted for in multiple ways. 这可以由双方来解释. That's the traditional way,他继续说道. “其次, 专利池可以为市场提供一种更容易、更透明地解释这种风险的方法. It can be more of a level playing field, 它也可以, 从许可方的角度来看, provide returns that are predictable and regular."

DASH适用于哪里??

Regarding the technologies covered in the new pool, 时问 where MPEG-DASH fits, given its association with the longstanding MPEG-LA pool 并入通过拉今年早些时候. "有 a pool for that with MPEG-LA back in the late teens. What happened with that and where are we with that now?"

“我认为那个游泳池已经不复存在了. I'm not sure if that MPEG-LA pool was dropped before or after MPEG-LA merged with Via, 但我认为Avanci认为将MPEG-DASH与其他编解码器一起包含是有意义的，因为他们试图授权的人可能想要立即消除所有风险."

泳池里的每个人?

As for the "internet streaming companies" Avanci视频 is targeting, 时问, “他们是在追逐cdn吗, 他们是在追出版商吗, are they going after service providers, 或者以上都是?"

"I don't know if there's a definitive answer on that,摩尔说. "I do recall reading that among the targets would be the OTTs. 我不确定这是它的范围."

当然, 对于拥有这种或任何专利池的内容公司来说，关键问题是版税如何适用于内容，以及这些版税将如何适用于他们提供的内容. 但是，随着视频编码性质的发展，如何从版税的角度计算和评估使用量仍然是一个不断变化的目标.

“传统上, 专利池确定了视频压缩功能价值链的一部分，将所有版税都推到这一功能上, 考虑到宇宙的其余部分可能也在实施这个标准，将相应地适应,摩尔解释道. “因此，如果设备为视频压缩功能付费，而流媒体不付费, then perhaps that can be accounted for in other ways. 可能会有双边协议, 例如, 每次用户使用设备OEM的设备签约，流媒体和设备OEM之间就会有一定比例的收入. That's actually a fairly common way to account for that, 但现在我们看到，越来越多的人开始将内容提供商的专利风险隔离开来. We're seeing some lawsuits in the relatively recent past. 有 an injunction in Germany against Netflix那就是使用HEVC的标准必要专利，现在越来越多的人认识到这一点. 从授权方的角度来看，我认为设备原始设备制造商甚至没有捕捉到视频压缩功能的全部价值, 随着编码越来越多, 代码转换, and decoding are happening in the cloud and not on the device. 因此，让这些设备成为专利使用费的唯一来源可能没有多大意义."

评估Avanci 25

Ozer询问了Avanci的25个初始授权方在整体格局中所占的比例，特别是在其他几个类似的专利池中，以及这对不在名单上的公司意味着什么.

Avanci视频的初始许可人

"I thought this was an impressive list of initial licensors. You have a lot of major contributors to various codecs,摩尔说. “LG在HEVC中占据强势地位. Huawei was one of the leading contributors to VVC, and they're part of the initial contingent as well. So you have a mix of licensors that you probably would want to clear the risk from. 我不能告诉你任何给定的编解码器在这个许可列表中所占的百分比, 但通常情况下，订单数量会随着时间的推移而增长，而价格不会改变. So if you were a licensee and you signed up today, 马可尼认为，他们给你的价格对于视频压缩功能来说是一个公平的价格, understanding that they're probably going to get more and more patent coverage over time."

Though Avanci视频 does not provide pricing in the FAQ on its site, it does state (echoing Moore's point), 您的Avanci视频许可中的版税费率不会随着新的许可人加入Avanci视频而增加. platform and the number of patents included in your license grows."

编解码器许可方的巨大变化?

Looking more broadly at this latest development in the video codec patent pool saga, 时问, "Does this mark some kind of a sea change? If you've not been assuming that you were going to end up paying royalties, all of a sudden will your financial people come and say, ‘嘿, we've got to start accounting for this in our revenue and expense,“还是你觉得这太离谱了??"

"I'm going to go in the middle here," Moore hedges. "This is a sea change for the MPEG codecs in the sense that there was, 一度, 内容提供商有机会获得免费协议，不向访问之前起诉, 至少. I believe that 通过拉 had a similar program, so in that sense, implementations were free. 记住这一点 HVEC提前特别是拥有大量的权利，如果你是一个内容提供商，你需要授权,他继续说道. "So you may, 一度, have considered it free. 如果免费获得你想要的版权的机会消失了，那么这就是一种改变. 我注意到，据我所知，有五到六家公司是Avanci库的初始许可方，也是访问之前库的一部分."

And how will Avanci's arrival on the scene affect companies' codec choices going forward?

“从在线旅行社的角度来看, 我认为它解决了哪个编解码器具有与之相关的专利成本的问题, 因为现在他们都知道了,摩尔解释道. “Avanci游泳池是, 据我所知, 目的是创造一个公平的竞争环境，因为每个编解码器都有专利成本, so you may as well choose the one that works best for your needs. 一度,他继续说道, "the prevailing wisdom was that [OTTs] might have to pay for the MPEG codecs, but not for the vpx suite of codecs excluding AV1. I don't think that's going to be the case going forward. 我希望在线旅行社能从这一声明中得到适当的教训，即他们将不得不付出一些代价."

了解更多关于流媒体编解码器专利池永远在变化的状态及其对行业的影响, 加入罗伯特·摩尔在流媒体连接11月15日，他主持的虚拟小组 Deep Dive: How Codec Patent Pools Will Impact Streaming in 2024.