Tokyo — Sony and Panasonic, announced a jointly developed specification for recording high-definition video to optical media.
Panasonic announced separately a variant of the same spec for recording HD to SD flash-memory cards.
According to a statement released by the two firms, the “AVCHD” spec covers HD video recorded at 1,080i and 720p signals onto 8cm DVD media. The format employs the MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 codec for video compression, and Dolby Digital (AC-3) or Linear PCM audio codec. The new codec is “two times more efficient than either MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 technologies,” the companies said.
Neither company announced firm product plans but noted that they would attempt to promote and license the specification across the industry.
