Expectations and challenges for next generation video compression

In the near future, significantly increase in resolution and perceptual quality will be expected for home and mobile video applications. With future devices and content moving toward high-definition (for mobile applications) and ultra-high-definition (for home applications), current AVC/H.264 technology will soon be unable to efficiently meet the compression demand for transmission. With the recent work from ISO/IEC MPEG high-performance video coding (HVC) and ITU-T VCEG groups, and the establishment of the Joint Collaborative Team (JCT), a new generation of video compression standardization process aiming at major improvements over the current AVC/H.264 standard has begun. In this paper, we briefly look at the technology and applications of video compression from the past to the present, and into possible directions and challenges for the next five years. We discuss key compression techniques and trends for future video coding efficiency, perceptual quality, and computational complexity.