Google is developing an open source alternative to Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and Auro-3D

[auxout]

Well, the title says it. It's named "Project Caviar" and will likely be based on the "Immersive Audio Container". Just like AV1, the project aims to circumvent excessive royalty-payments due to licensing. As it's focused on YouTube/streaming, it will be a lossy format based on AAC and OPUS. Could have a huge impact.

What are your thoughts?

 

[killdozzer]

Google and open source... It goes against my personal views. I see this as a legalized intellectual theft. The concept is already out there, it's not a new idea. Then you use people's knowledge to make it for you and then you either sell it or use it to better sell your products.

I don't like to see super-loaded, super-influential, super-wealthy companies going for this "grass-root" products. Sorry to go political. I'll stop now.

 

[voodooless]

Your late to the party:

Will Google deliver us from Dolby

Google seems to head to a premiere: doing something actually good for human kind: Google goes after Dolby with HDR and audio standards. Now Google beeing themselves I wonder what will be the catch here because I fear what they will come with will be more evil than we experienced from Dolby. Hey...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[frabor]

Google is far from perfect, and they push an open software with closed/ restricted portions. In this case, the party who does evil is Dolby, a quasy monopoly in multichannel sounds that charges so much for ip that few music gets mastered even in 3.1. we can cannot use Dolby on DACs, or have multichannel DACs with Dolby for a good price due to all the deals the Denon's of the world get that are not available to the Topping's of the world. If Google is able to shake this and bring more players (apple, samsung/Harman) and deliver us from the tirany of Dolby and the Dolby receiver, while we get 3.1 or better sound recordings that would be great.

Never underestimate the power on Netflix. Some time ago it mandated that all new content had to be 4k, sending ripples into the indi/ low cost/ documentary contents and bringing troves of 4k stunning looking material. A similar mandate stating that a Google or competing sound format is mandated/ recommend for such productions could change the industry forever

 

[auxout]

Google and open source... It goes against my personal views. I see this as a legalized intellectual theft. The concept is already out there, it's not a new idea. Then you use people's knowledge to make it for you and then you either sell it or use it to better sell your products.

I don't like to see super-loaded, super-influential, super-wealthy companies going for this "grass-root" products. Sorry to go political. I'll stop now.

Hmm I see this very differently. A better comparison might be a concept like a car, house, internet-browser or book. The concept of spatial audio is pretty old. Dolby, DTS and Auro just licensed and pushed their own implementations (by the way, wouldn't those also be theft?). Their licensing costs got so high, that Google now develops its own codec while open sourcing it. Win-win.

Google contributes quite a lot to the Open Source community (Summer of Code, Android, Chrome, Go). Of course they push the codec in their own interests, but you are free to compile and use each product without Google's involvement. I think that's a good deal. Armin regularly proves just how bad modern A/V receivers are. This Codec will give you the opportunity to build your own.

AV1 already is a blessing. Open source spatial audio would allow processing on any device with enough power. That's so much more than we have now.

Your late to the party:

Will Google deliver us from Dolby

Google seems to head to a premiere: doing something actually good for human kind: Google goes after Dolby with HDR and audio standards. Now Google beeing themselves I wonder what will be the catch here because I fear what they will come with will be more evil than we experienced from Dolby. Hey...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Thanks for the link! Although I finds the title quite misleading, so I would keep this thread open.

Google is far from perfect, and they push an open software with closed/ restricted portions. In this case, the party who does evil is Dolby, a quasy monopoly in multichannel sounds that charges so much for ip that few music gets mastered even in 3.1. we can cannot use Dolby on DACs, or have multichannel DACs with Dolby for a good price due to all the deals the Denon's of the world get that are not available to the Topping's of the world. If Google is able to shake this and bring more players (apple, samsung/Harman) and deliver us from the tirany of Dolby and the Dolby receiver, while we get 3.1 or better sound recordings that would be great.

Never underestimate the power on Netflix. Some time ago it mandated that all new content had to be 4k, sending ripples into the indi/ low cost/ documentary contents and bringing troves of 4k stunning looking material. A similar mandate stating that a Google or competing sound format is mandated/ recommend for such productions could change the industry forever

Just imagine a spatial audio Multichannel DAC from Topping/SMSL/Shiit etc. It has so much potential. Room correction like Dirac could simply be a plugin that you can easily add to your chain. Now it only needs a lossless/FLAC mode

Netflix already adapted AV1, so it's quote possible that they use it for their own productions. YouTube has a yearly turnover of about 30 billion Dollars, so their impact is huge.
I don't think Apple will use the codec, though. They don't support open source solutions and just licensed Atmos.

 

[Jazz]

Atmos is already a low cost add on for most consumers. It just comes on the AVR or sound bar like AIFF, FLAC, Mp3, Airplay, Alex, etc., etc. printed on the box. The only one with a shot is, of course, Sony, which had to go and make its own too. But it will never be open source.
The age and ubiquity and massive library for movie and music in Atmos is another wall anyone would have to get over. Plus, the brand is really in the head of musicians now. Also, Apple is in the game too with its software used by mixers for headphones. There are also more and more plug ins for Atmos editing.
I think the ship has sailed for Google and Sony for that matter.
https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/articles/00155680

 

[mSpot]

Does it matter? Google will probably kill the project within a few years.

Killed by Google

Killed by Google is the open source list of dead Google products, services, and devices. It serves as a tribute and memorial of beloved services and products killed by Google.

killedbygoogle.com

The Google Cemetery - Dead Google products

A list of dead google products and services and why they died.

gcemetery.co

 

[auxout]

Atmos is already a low cost add on for most consumers. It just comes on the AVR or sound bar like AIFF, FLAC, Mp3, Airplay, Alex, etc., etc. printed on the box. The only one with a shot is, of course, Sony, which had to go and make its own too. But it will never be open source.
The age and ubiquity and massive library for movie and music in Atmos is another wall anyone would have to get over. Plus, the brand is really in the head of musicians now. Also, Apple is in the game too with its software used by mixers for headphones. There are also more and more plug ins for Atmos editing.
I think the ship has sailed for Google and Sony for that matter.
https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/articles/00155680

I think broad applications of spatial audio are just starting. And even low cost is a high barrier compared to no cost. Just as I wrote, I think YouTube and Netflix will have a huge impact. For them, every bit counts, that's why they're adopting AV1.

Does it matter? Google will probably kill the project within a few years.

Killed by Google

Killed by Google is the open source list of dead Google products, services, and devices. It serves as a tribute and memorial of beloved services and products killed by Google.

killedbygoogle.com

The Google Cemetery - Dead Google products

A list of dead google products and services and why they died.

gcemetery.co

An Open Source codec, developed by a foundation, will have a different dynamic compared to Google's services.