Problem statement:

Making standards, especially communication standards, is one of the noblest activities humans can perform for their fellow humans. The MPEG group used to do that for media and other data. However, ISO, the body that hosted MPEG, suffers from a number of deficiencies. Two of these are: fuzzy governance and outdated handling of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), the engine that ensures technical innovation-based progress. The prospects of reforming ISO are low: installing a good governance requires leadership capable to jointly manage National Body expectations due process, and solving the IPR problem is an unrewarding endeavour whose only beneficiary is MPEG. Indeed, 57.5% of patent declarations received by ISO relate to just MPEG standards.

Moving Pictures coding by Artificial Intelligence

MPAI is a not-for-profit organisation that addresses the two deficiencies. It builds on and innovates MPEG’s experience and achievements, and gets the involvement of a large community of industry, research and academic experts. MPAI’s governance is clear and streamlined and its specifications are developed using a process that is technically sound and designed to facilitate practical use of IPR in MPAI specifications.

Mission:

To promote the efficient use of Data by

1.      developing Technical Specifications (TS) of

a.       Compression/decompression Formats for any type of Data, especially using new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, and

b.      technologies that facilitate integration of Data Compression components in ICT systems, and

2.      striving to bridge the gap between TSs and their practical use through the develop­ment of IPR Guidelines, such as Framework Licences and other instruments.

Data include, but are not restricted to: media, health, manufacturing, automotive and generic data.

Governance:

The General Assembly (GA) elects the Board of Directors, establishes Development Committees (DC) tasked to develop specifications and approves their TSs. Each Member appoints an adequate number of representatives in DCs. Principal Members appoint one representative in the IPR Support Advisory Committee (IPR SAC).

Process:

Before a new project starts

1.      The IPR SAC develops a Framework Licence (FWL) that lists the elements of the future licen­ce without any indication of cost. Examples of such possible elements are: possible “royalty free profile” with a given performance level, possible “initial grace period” depending on market develop­ment, possible “content fees", possible one or more annual “caps”, possible given ratio of user devices generating human perceivable signals versus other user devices etc.

2.      The FWL is approved by a qualified majority of Principal Members participating in the project.

3.      Each Member participating in the project declares to be ready to license their IP as per the FWL and to take a licence if it will use the Technical Specification covered by IP.

4.      Each Member shall inform the Secretariat of the result of its best effort identification of IP that it believes is infringed by a TS that is being or is already developed by a DC.

Method of work:

The GA develops, maintains and constantly updates a work plan on the basis of Members’ inputs and responses to Calls for Interest. The GA assigns the development of a TS to a DC. The DC typically issues Calls for Evidence and/or Calls for Technol­ogy. Anybody may answer Calls for Interest, Evidence or Technology. A non-Member whose contribution submitted in response to a Call for Technology is accepted, is requested to join MPAI. DCs develop TSs by consensus. If consensus is not reached on an issue, the chair may decide to bring the matter to the attention of the GA who decides by qualified majority vote. The DC shall docum­ent which (part of a) contribution is adopted in the TS.

Membership:

Companies and organisations, including universities, may become Principal or As­sociated Members at their choice. Only Principal Members are allowed to vote. Associated Mem­bers may join DCs and contribute to the development of TSs. Applicants can become and then remain Members by paying yearly membership fees.

Key documents:

The text above is a summary description of MPAI. The Statutes,should be consulted for precise information.

A novel approach:

MPAI offers a novel approach to standardisation:

1. Creation of a broad multi-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder community;

2. Low access threshold to develop specifications: most meetings are held by teleconference supported by advanced ICT-based collaboration facilities;

3. Framework Licences to facilitate the use of approved Technical Specifications covered by IP;

4.  Participation of experts who have stayed away from formal standardisation because of cost and other concerns;

5. Timely delivery of application-driven and technology-intensive specifications;

6. Bottom-up governance in specification development;

7. No external constraints on members when they decide about activities.