A tutorial on the Digital Audio-Visual Council (DAVIC) standardisation activity

International compatibility for the distribution of video and multimedia content through communication networks is something which has thus far not been achieved. New digital systems provide an opportunity for global compatibility between audio and video transmission and full multimedia communications incorporating text, data, audio, still and moving video in an interactive environment. It is with this commercial opportunity in mind that the Digital Audio-Visual Council (DAVIC) has been created and its first standards, DAVIC1.0 and 1.1, have been released. In Europe the European Commission is actively supporting the development of DAVIC through its Advanced Communications Technologies and Services (ACTS) initiative but DAVIC has widespread international support