As a matter of fact, there is. It is called MPEG-4 -- MP4 for short -- and a number of companies and projects are already using it.

What Is MPEG-4?

MP3 -- the format of the compressed audio files that give RIAA chair Hilary Rosen nightmares -- is actually part of MPEG-1 audio layer 3 standard. There is no "MPEG-3" standard, though its assumed existence is a common misconception. The MPEG-4 standard is the direct successor to MPEG-2.

MPEG derives its name from the Moving Picture Experts Group, the working group that is responsible for developing coded representations of digital audio and video. In other words, the MPEG members dream up ways to efficiently deliver audio and video in digital formats that you can play on your computer or other electronic appliances.

Rob Koenen, president of the MPEG-4 Industry Forum, which aims to increase adoption of the format, told NewsFactor that MPEG-4 is really "a toolbox that may be extended as need be," not a static format.

Modular Format

Specifically, the standard consists of eight parts, some of which are still in development. Each part handles different tasks, such as video and audio representation, file format selection and format transfer. Implementation of the standard is left to companies and groups that want to create software or hardware that uses digital video and audio.

"The major parts of the standard were [established] a couple of years ago," Koenen said. "Some stuff is still being added ... but there are chips available right now, [and] a number of players already." According to the MPEG-4 Industry Forum's Web site, the standard became usable in 1999, and the parts that have been added since that time do not break the standard.

Is It Done Yet?

So, although MP4 does not get the kind of press that prior standards have received, it is alive and well. Apple's QuickTime 6, probably the most popular software media player, supports the MP4 file format, and many other companies also are delivering software and hardware products that use the standard.

However, some patent and licensing issues remain to be ironed out before the specification is finalized. Indeed, the process of identifying and dealing with patent issues has taken longer than defining the standard itself. But Paul Ritchie, executive director of the MPEG-4 Industry Forum, said there is light at the end of the tunnel.

"Much of that has been cleared up to everyone's working satisfaction," Ritchie told NewsFactor. "Most of the issues, if not 99.9 percent of the issues, have been addressed."

Is There an MPEG-5?

Once MPEG-4 takes off, and all the patent snags have been dealt with, will the MPEG wizards start conjuring MPEG-5? Koenen said that is unlikely because MPEG-4 is extensible and therefore can grow along with technology in general. When asked how long the MPEG-4 standard might be around, he seemed confident that it could survive over the long haul.

"Twenty years is quite a good estimate," he said. "I'd be confident it'll still be alive then. The framework will still stand."