MPEG2HEVCbased

MPEG2HEVCbased is a term used to describe a workflow or delivery approach that uses HEVC-encoded video streams within an MPEG-2–based transport or container system. It is not an official standard; rather it is a descriptive label used in industry and research to indicate compatibility with legacy MPEG-2 infrastructure while taking advantage of HEVC’s improved compression.

In practice, video content is encoded with HEVC, producing HEVC elementary streams. These streams are then multiplexed into an MPEG-2 transport stream (MPEG-2 TS) or other MPEG-2 container formats for delivery over broadcast, satellite, or IP networks. Audio and subtitle streams can employ common codecs such as AAC, AC-3, or DVB subtitles, and the resulting stream can be subject to conditional access and DRM as needed.

Benefits of this approach include higher compression efficiency, which reduces bandwidth requirements or improves quality at the same bitrate. It enables a gradual upgrade of broadcast and delivery networks to HEVC without the need to replace existing transport infrastructure.

Limitations and considerations include the need for decoders that support HEVC; some legacy MPEG-2 decoders may not handle HEVC, requiring transcoding or compatibility layers. Licensing and patent considerations for HEVC may apply, and compatibility with DVB/ATSC standards depends on the specifics of the implementation and deployment.

See also: MPEG-2, HEVC, MPEG-TS, DVB, ATSC, H.265.