MP4 is short for ‘MPEG-4’. The official file extension for MPEG-4 is .mp4, hence the short name MP4.
MPEG-4 technology has been developed to deliver DVD-quality audio and images in an extremely small file size, ideal for playback on portable MP4 players such as the iPod Video.
MP4 is here to stay. The Apple Corporation itself describes MP4 as “the global multimedia standard, delivering professional-quality audio and video transmissions over a wide range of bandwidths, from cell phones to broadband and beyond.” Thy goes on to say that “hundreds of researchers from around the world contributed to MPEG-4, which was finalized in 1998 and became an international standard in 2000.”
The BBC confirms that MPEG-4 is used to compress video and is the successor to MPEG-2. They also explain that the version that can convert massive movie files into a more manageable size has leaked onto the internet thanks to Microsoft. Microsoft developed the software to compress and decompress video, which is called a codec. (A codec is a device or program capable of encoding and decoding a digital signal or data stream. The word codec stands for compression/decompression algorithm)
The codec helps the Windows Media Player program to handle moving images sent over the web. Other web-based media players like Real Player will also play the MP4 file format as long as you have the latest version downloaded. You must download the latest MP4 codec to your own digital media player to ensure playback compatibility of MP4 files.
However, an MP4 file does not only refer to video content: an MP4 file can also be an audio file. Many people think that the MP4 format will be the standard audio and visual file format of the future.
The iPod Video is by far the most popular MP4 player on the market. But iPod doesn’t want us to call it an MP4 player even though it plays MP4 files. Because? It could be because you could choose another MP4 player instead!
Another recent high-profile MP4 Player release is Microsoft’s Zune Player. Surprisingly, however, ZDnet.com found that at the time of launch, Zune devices only play protected files from the Zune marketplace.
This is where Microsoft and Apple are possibly to blame. Both companies doubtfully control certain markets. However, this may give the consumer of the MP4 player an advantage. If you take the time to convert your video files to MP4 (for which there is free software available), you can play them on your cheapest MP4 player, which probably has more features than the Video iPod. Even if you choose to switch to Video iPod in the future, you can still transfer your old MP4 files.
The MP4 file format will be an integral part of the future of web-based video and portable media player video. It is an increasingly popular global multimedia standard. It is the file format that best ensures mass acceptance of your own media files in various types of media players.
