Ahh, the mp3 being dead is a misnomer. Sure, the company that owns it
isn't offering anymore licenses, but this is because their patents on
the format is expiring. This means it's no longer necessary to buy a
license, to be able to create and distribute mp3 formatted files.
I figured this was the reason, but this article confirms it.
http://hackaday.com/2017/05/14/patents-on-mp3-format-due-to-expire/
For more detailed information, see here.
https://madfileformatscience.garymcgath.com/2016/04/05/mp3patent/
By the end of 2017, all of the current mp3 patents will be expired, and
though it looks like the owners *could* make a case for extending the
format lock, it appears they aren't going to bother (probably a wise
decision).
As a result, I'd say this indicates that the mp3 format is far from
dead, if anything, I'd expect to see even more support for it being
built in to a wider array of products and programs.
I doubt this is anywhere near the end of life for mp3, it's just too
popular.
On 5/16/2017 6:15 PM, Dane Trethowan wrote:
Yep subject line says everything, the format is dead and no new
licences will be issued to continue supporting or developing the format.
MP3 has had a truly remarkable run when you think about it, almost 20
years and the format has ben at the heart of changing the way we
listen to music.
Now there are more efficient formats such as AAC out there and
Lossless compressed formats such as FLAC, storage space has increased
and so it goes.
There will be people who use MP3 for a long time to come but those
will become fewer as more people adopt other methods.
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