computer science

MPEG media transport

MPEG media transport is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand MPEG media transport rather than just read about it. In short: MPEG media transport (MMT), specified as ISO/IEC 23008-1 (MPEG-H Part 1), is a digital container standard developed by Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) that supports High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) video. MMT was designed to transfer data using the all-Internet Protocol (All-IP) network.

Key takeaways

MPEG media transport belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect MPEG media transport to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of MPEG media transport from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

MPEG media transport (MMT), specified as ISO/IEC 23008-1 (MPEG-H Part 1), is a digital container standard developed by Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) that supports High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) video. MMT was designed to transfer data using the all-Internet Protocol (All-IP) network.

History In April 2013 a list of requirements was released for MMT and the general requirements stated that MMT must have clear advantages when compared to existing container formats and that it must have low computational demands. Also in April 2013 a list of use cases for MMT was released which included the need for it to support Ultra HD video content, 3D video content, interactive content, user-generated content, applications that support multi-device presentation, subtitles, picture-in-picture video, and multiple audio tracks. MPEG has estimated that the first edition of MMT will reach Final Draft International Standard (FDIS) in November 2013. On May 30, 2013, NHK started showing test equipment based on MMT at the NHK Science & Technology Research Laboratories Open House 2013.

Schedule The timescale for the completion of the first version of the MMT standard in the MPEG standardization process:

October 2010: Call for Proposals March 2011: Working Draft July 2012: Committee Draft January 2013: 2nd Committee Draft April 2013: Draft International Standard November 2013: Final Draft International Standard May 2014: International Standard published

Highlights MPEG MMT succeeds MPEG-2 TS as the media transport solution for broadcasting and IP network content distribution, with the aim of serving new applications like UHDTV, second screen, ..., etc., with full support of HTML5 and simplification of packetization and synchronization with a pure IP based transport. It has the following technology innovations:

Convergence of IP transport and HTML 5 presentation Multiplexing of various streaming components from different sources Simplification of TS stack and easy conversion between storage file format and streaming format Support multiple devices and hybrid delivery Advanced QoS/QoE engineering features

Solutions and demos SKT MMT-based True Realtime (TR) video streaming solution (Oct' 2014) SK Telecom (The leading mobile operator in Korea) and Samsung have developed and tested their True Real-Time Mobile Streaming system based on the emerging MPEG MMT standard over SKT's commercial LTE network with Btv video streaming platform. The results showed a latency reduction of 80%, which would significantly improve the user experience of live content streaming. Current mobile video streaming technologies often suffer up to 15 seconds of latency, but its implementation of MMT has reduced that to 3 seconds. SK Telecom said they will put more effort to strengthen their mobile network service quality by developing innovative and advanced technologies with the aim of having it commercially available next year.

Technicolor-Sinclair Demo (Oct 2014) Sinclair Broadcast Group and Technicolor delivered successfully ATSC 3.0 4K UHD testbed platform. The Technicolor platform, based on open audio, video, and transport standards including Scalable HEVC (SHVC), MPEG-H audio, and MPEG-MMT transport, has been integrated into Sinclair's experimental OFDM transmission system in Baltimore, Maryland. The impact of this deployment is that broadcasters will be able to deliver the highest quality content, inclusive of 4K UHD broadcast in a simultaneous transmission to consumers both at home and on the go.

NHK MMT UHD system demo (May, 2014) In Japan, Super Hi-Vision test services are planned to begin in 2016, and commercial services are planned to begin in 2020. NHK has studied MPEG Media Transport (MMT) as the transport protocol for the next generation of broadcasting systems since it enables hybrid delivery using broadcasting and broadband networks. They have demonstrated MMT-based 8K Super Hi-Vision Broadcasting at their open house exhibition.

libatsc3 Android Sample App with MMT MFU playback (January 2020) libatsc3 provides an ATSC 3.0 NGBP Open Source Library - Tools for parsing and decoding STLTP, LMT, LLS, SLS, and NextGen supported standards. In January 2020, libatsc3 released a baseline Android sample app providing PCAP playback of ROUTE/DASH and implemented the world's first open-source MMT player with MFU (Media Fragmentation Unit) de-encapsulation. By using the MFU for media essence decoding (e.g. single samples are pushed to the media decoder), rather than the traditional MPU (Media Presentation Unit) of ISOBMFF and DASH, the baseline NGBP implementation can provide robust media playback regardless of packetized DU (data unit) loss, transient MFU loss, or sustained MPU loss. Rapid recovery and de-encapsulation durability are also enabled by implementing out-of-order de-packetization using the MMTHSample hint at the start of every media sample - providing the sample number, data unit length, and offset. Other implementations relying on ISOBMFF with MOOF and TRUN box provide only one emission of sample length and duration MPU, posing a high risk of full GOP loss disproportionate to the MDAT size (e.g. 1KB of ALC packet loss may result up to the loss of ~1MB or more of the essence). libatsc3 is designed to be robust and durable in inherently lossy ATSC 3.0 IP-multicast emissions, including mobile reception, to demonstrate the potential of NextGen across all devices and platforms. More information at libatsc3 Overview.

libatsc3 ExoPlayer MMT Plugin with MFU de-packetization and out-of-order mode support (February 2021) Expanding on the libatsc3 android proof-of-concept, ONEMedia 3.0 and ngbp.org have developed an ExoPlayer plugin for MMT, including support for MFU de-packetization and out-of-order mode support. Source and sample Android Activity available on GitHub: ExoPlayer ISO23008-1 MMT extension

See also ISO base media file format — a previous digital container standard created by MPEG and defined in ISO/IEC 14496-12 MPEG transport stream — a previous digital container standard created by MPEG and defined in ISO/IEC 13818-1 MPEG program stream — a previous digital container standard created by MPEG and defined in ISO/IEC 13818-1

References

External links MPEG Media Transport

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with MPEG media transport

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what MPEG media transport claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to MPEG media transport before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about MPEG media transport ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of MPEG media transport

In research: MPEG media transport appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses MPEG media transport in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: MPEG media transport is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Computer file formats, Digital container formats, IEC standards, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for MPEG media transport outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study MPEG media transport in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what MPEG media transport means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain MPEG media transport out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is MPEG media transport in simple terms?

Why does MPEG media transport matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study MPEG media transport?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on MPEG media transport.