Originally introduced in the mid-Nineties and replacing the original MPEG suite (deriving from the Motion Picture Experts Group) in 1999, MPEG-2 is the standard for the “generic coding of moving pictures and associated audio information.” As a digital video standard, it is used for DVDs and television video broadcast. In fact, it is the most widely used codec for broadcast.
DVD and ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee) video is based on MPEG-2, which refers to video files with TS, VOB, MPG, and SVCD extensions. Prepared and drafted by the International Telecommunications Union’s Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) and adopted by the Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, ISO/IEC 13818 specifies the MPEG-2 format, and it currently consists of ten parts.
The first three parts of the international standard cover the system layer, video coding scheme, and coded representation of the audio, respectively. The other documents each cover a significant component of the coding. Notably, Part Seven details advanced audio coding (AAC).
All parts of the ISO/IEC 13818 standard are listed below. As these documents need to remain current with the industry they serve, please note that there are numerous amendments and corrigenda to some of the current editions. Amendments alter materials in the existing standards, and corrigenda repair editorial errors in existing standards.
This standard has three corrigendum documents: Cor1:2007, Cor2:2011, and Cor3:2012.
It also has three amendments: Amd1:2005, Amd2:2005 (this amendment has two corrigenda: Amd2/Cor1:2007 and Amd2/Cor2:2009), and Amd3:2009.
ISO/IEC TR 13818-5:2005 – Information technology – Generic coding of moving pictures and associated audio information – Part 5: Software simulation (this is a technical report, not a standard)
This standard has two corrigendum documents: Cor1:1999 and Cor2:2002.
It also has three amendments: Amd1:2000 (this amendment has a corrigendum: Amd1/Cor1:2002), Amd2:2000, and Amd3:2001.
This standard has two corrigendum documents: Cor1:2009 and Cor2:2010.
It also has an amendment: Amd1:2007.
Part Eight covered 10-bit video extension, but it has been withdrawn due to lack of industry interest.
Parts One through Three of the MPEG-2 standard, or the “generic coding of moving pictures and audio information,” is available as ISO/IEC 13818 Information technology – Generic Coding of Moving Pictures and Audio Information Package (Parts 1 – 3).
