Via LA launches new voice codec pool: Dolby, ETRI, Huawei, JVCKenwood and NTT already on board

Context: Via LA has been deepening its focus in China as far back as 2019 – when home appliances maker Haier acquired a licence for its Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) pool. In the last couple of years, the pool operator has announced buy-ins from Chinese TV manufacturer Skyworth Group, TCL, Oppo, Xiaomi and Lenovo, too. Additionally, the operator has been adopting what it calls an “evergreen” model for its pools, expanding its High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) patent pool in April, for example, to include patents for the next iteration of video codec technology, Versatile Video Coding (VVC).

 

What’s new: Today, Via LA’s focus is extending further into Asia with the launch of its new Voice Codec pool with players such as ETRI, Huawei, NTT and JVCKenwood already involved as licensors, as well as Dolby in the U.S. The pool, which covers voice technologies including Enhanced Voice Services (EVS) and Immersive Voice and Audio Services (IVAS), has also received buy-in from Huawei as its first licensee. The standard rate for the pool is set at 60 U.S. cents per unit.

 

Direct impact: With four of five licensors on board from Asia, Via LA’s pool confirms the inroads it has made into the continent over the past few years. The operator’s head of programs Willy Chang notes that China, Japan and South Korea may be Via LA’s “strongest geographies”, and with Huawei signed up it is expected that there will be significant buy-in from that part of the world. 

 

Wider ramifications: This pool is a novelty for the video and audio codec market, as it groups together EVS and the very nascent technology standard of IVAS. While the latter technology is yet to see any adoption, the pool operator is confident that this will occur because of the value it will bring to new technologies. The EVS market has also historically seen a lot of litigation. According to Chang, the new pool seeks to help with that by facilitating licensing in a more transparent way.