LAS VEGAS, USA, ERLANGEN, Germany: Fraunhofer IIS announced today at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show in Las Vegas that they are working with Blackmagic Design to include MPEG-H editing and authoring tools in the Fairlight audio subsystem of this popular content creation application. NAB visitors will be able to hear a preview of the technology at the Fraunhofer (SU4816) and Blackmagic Design (SL216) booths, where it will be shown in  DaVinci Resolve 16 Studio, using the Fairlight 5-bay audio console. MPEG-H mixing and panning, as well as basic metadata authoring, is already supported in this preview, allowing creation of immersive MPEG-H programming using the MPEG-H control track format.

"Fraunhofer is very pleased to work with Blackmagic to bring MPEG-H to DaVinci Resolve, since it now makes creating immersive sound productions as easy as editing a stereo show. We are excited since this offers Resolve users a simple and accessible way to begin using next-generation audio without configuring separate audio programs and plug-ins. Also, MPEG-H is not just immersive sound or surround sound, it has audio objects that a user can adjust in volume and position to hear alternate commentary or other sounds in the same bitstream," said Robert Bleidt, Division General Manager at Fraunhofer USA DMT.

DaVinci Resolve 16 Studio will allow creating content in both the MPEG-H control track format and as MPEG-H bitstreams in standard MP4 files. The control track is the MPEG-H Audio System's production format that stores audio as standard uncompressed PCM tracks, plus a time-code like audio track that contains object and scene metadata and channel assignments. The control track format allows content to be re-edited multiple times without any generational loss from audio encoding or lipsync issues and is today's format for professional MPEG-H content transmission and archiving using existing equipment. Content in the control track format is automatically encoded into an MPEG-H bitstream by video encoders for final broadcast or delivery. DaVinci Resolve 16 Studio will also encode MPEG-H bitstreams into an MP4 audio or audio/video file directly for final delivery.

About the MPEG-H Audio System

MPEG-H is today's most advanced next-generation audio system, supporting immersive sound delivery with traditional channels and fully dynamic audio objects. MPEG-H also allows universal delivery of the same bitstream to TV's, soundbars, home theaters and mobile devices, tailoring the reproduction for the best listening experience in each situation. It is standardized in the ATSC, DVB, and TTA broadcast standards and is the audio system of choice for UHDTV services in China. MPEG-H is the first of the next-generation audio systems to go on the air in regular broadcast service, being used by all Korean TV networks since May 2017. MPEG-H was also recently selected as the audio system for Sony's new 360 Reality Audio immersive music service.

To learn more about MPEG-H Audio, please visit https://www.iis.fraunhofer.de/mpeg-h and www.mpegh.com.