The period of filmmaking with a cell phone has arrived. As anybody can now shoot, edit and share high-quality video, customers more and more anticipate higher colour accuracy, finer element and extra post-production flexibility. In response, Samsung Electronics has developed the Advanced Professional Video (APV) codec and is working to ascertain it as a worldwide open normal.
Why APV
Codecs could also be unfamiliar to many shoppers, however they act as invisible engines shaping the consumer expertise. Think of a suitcase — the way you pack it determines how a lot it holds and the way simply yow will discover what you want. Likewise, an environment friendly codec allows a consumer to retailer extra high-quality video whereas bettering playback and modifying.
Video falls into two classes — informal video, on a regular basis clips we seize and share, {and professional} video for cinema-grade modifying. While informal codecs prioritize compression effectivity, skilled codecs should protect picture high quality and reproduce colours with precision. Just as overpacking a suitcase can injury or distort its contents, skilled video requires a strong codec that preserves each element.
Conventional compression makes it troublesome to completely allow cell post-production — together with colour grading, the place creators apply exact tones to match their creative imaginative and prescient, and visible results (VFX). APV was designed to help your complete workflow from seize to ultimate edit whereas preserving element even after a number of rounds of recompression.
Reducing Complexity Without Compromise
The largest technical problem was decreasing complexity. Conventional skilled codecs deal with picture high quality, making them computationally demanding and limiting use to high-end {hardware}. The aim was to realize a low-complexity design that cell processors might deal with in actual time with out compromising high quality.
To tackle this, Samsung launched light-weight entropy coding1 to cut back computational load and body tiling2 that permits parallel encoding and decoding throughout a number of cores. As a consequence, APV helps real-time processing of as much as 8K video on cellphones whereas sustaining picture high quality with minimal loss, even after a number of edits.
| Category | Conventional Video Codec | APV Codec |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Viewing and sharing | Professional modifying and high-quality preservation |
| Key Focus | Reducing file dimension (compression effectivity) | Preserving authentic colour and element at 100% |
| Processing Speed | Standard processing | Real-time 8K processing on cellphones |
| Use Cases | Social media uploads | Film manufacturing, skilled promoting, superior modifying |
Building an Open Ecosystem for All
The worth of expertise lies in how broadly it’s used. Samsung selected to construct an open ecosystem the place anybody can undertake and advance the expertise. It’s like sharing an awesome recipe — resulting in even higher outcomes.
In February 2026, Samsung printed APV by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as RFC 9924, establishing it as a de facto international normal. The firm additionally launched the complete supply code on GitHub underneath the identify “OpenAPV,” enabling builders worldwide to take part and contribute.
This openness is driving ecosystem progress and accelerating adoption. The APV codec is supported in Android 16, whereas the open-source instrument FFmpeg and post-production software program DaVinci Resolve have additionally added help.
Collaborating Across Global Teams
This progress was pushed by Samsung’s international analysis collaboration. After Samsung Research (SR) led early improvement, groups throughout Samsung Research America (SRA), Samsung R&D Institute India-Bangalore (SRI-B), Samsung R&D Institute Poland (SRPOL) and Samsung R&D Institute Japan (SRJ) labored intently collectively. Their efforts led to a key milestone in October 2023, when APV was unveiled on the Samsung Developer Conference (SDC). In August 2024, Samsung joined the Academy Software Foundation (ASWF) to help the open-source video…
