Video coding format

A standardized method for representing compressed video data, defining how video samples are encoded and decoded. It specifies syntax and decoding rules so compliant systems can exchange video.

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Video codec: Software or hardware that encodes and decodes digital video. A codec implements the format’s encoding and decoding rules.
Digital video: A sequence of digitally represented images, often accompanied by audio and timing information. A video coding format represents this underlying sequence.
MPEG-2: A video and audio coding standard widely used in digital television and DVD-Video. It became a major format for broadcast and disc video.
Video container format: A file or stream structure that packages video, audio, subtitles, and metadata. A container organizes tracks; a coding format specifies compressed video data.
Interframe compression: Video compression that predicts frames using other frames in a sequence. Many formats reduce data by encoding changes between frames.
Image compression: Methods for reducing the data needed to represent still images. Video formats extend image compression across sequences of frames.
H.264/MPEG-4 AVC: A video coding standard used widely in streaming, broadcasting, and consumer recording. Its broad device support made it a common delivery format.
Video codec implementation: A particular software or hardware realization of a video encoder or decoder. Implementations follow a format but can differ in speed and compression quality.
Motion compensation: A technique that predicts image regions by estimating their movement between video frames. Motion prediction is a central tool in many video formats.
Quantization: The mapping of values to a finite set of levels, often reducing precision to save data. Lossy formats use quantization to trade fidelity for bitrate.