Increasing adoption of higher resolution cameras throughout the video surveillance marketplace in recent years has subsequently heightened demand for improved bandwidth-saving technologies to help end-users get the most out of the video data they are collecting on a daily basis. While the de facto industry standard, H.264, has helped the market successfully transition from analog to IP, the fact remains that improved video compressions capabilities will be needed to handle the proliferation of 4K cameras and higher-megapixel video moving forward.
H.265, which can greatly reduce bitrate without compromising video quality, promises to be the long-term solution the industry needs; however, the technology still faces several hurdles before it can be more widely adopted. That said, many of the industry’s major video surveillance manufacturers have already introduced H.265-based camera lines – many of them at the recently concluded ISC West. They include: Hanwha Techwin America, Hikvision, Dahua, Vicon, Panasonic and more. Some vendors have introduced their own bandwidth-reduction solutions, such as the Axis Zipstream, as a way to support customers who want to purchase high-resolution cameras in greater numbers without being hamstrung by network constraints.
To learn where the industry currently stands as it relates to the use of H.265, SecurityInfoWatch.com (SIW) recently caught up with Fredrik Svensson, chair of the ONVIF Profile T Working Group, to learn what the standards body is doing to facilitate adoption of the technology and what it will take for it to supplant H.264 as the market’s standard compression format.
SIW: In today’s market, what are the most current compression formats/methods and how are they contributing to reducing bandwidth and storage requirements?
Svensson: H.264 is the video compression format used by most companies today. Some companies also employ H.264 enhancements to compress areas irrelevant to the user at a higher ratio within a video stream while preserving quality for more important details like faces, license plates or buildings.
In the next year, it’s likely that H.265, H.264’s successor, will be increasingly used for compression. H.265 can in some cases double the data compression ratio of H.264, while retaining the same quality. Some companies are already using H.265 in their cameras and video management systems. Manufacturers are certainly preparing for its broader adoption in the coming year.
SIW: What compression formats are currently governed by accepted standards? Of those for which there is currently no established standard, is this process already underway and when might we see these new standards emerge and be applied industry-wide?
Svensson: ONVIF is working on incorporating new formats such as H.265 into its Profiles. With the new ONVIF video profile that is currently being developed, Profile T, ONVIF will implement a new media service that is compression agnostic, meaning it will support new video compression formats, including H.265, and new audio compression formats. Notably, ONVIF also will be able to add future video and audio codecs as needed without having to redesign its media service.
Standardization organizations that are directly addressing new compression standards include the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) and a joint commission of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)/International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), which is addressing the coding of audio, picture, multimedia and hypermedia information. Other compression formats on par with H.264 and H.265 are being developed by companies such as Google.
SIW: H.265 has been a major topic within the compression conversation for a while now, but is the industry ready for it? If not, when do you think we will see wide adoption of this new format?
Svensson: H.265 is somewhat of a work in progress in the physical security industry. Ideally there would be support for your desired specific compression format in all parts of your physical security system – the VMS, server hardware, graphics cards and camera. It does take a while for all of these components to be ready. But it’s only a matter of time for widespread H.265 adoption to become a reality.
ONVIF is including support for H.265 in Profile T because it will become the most widely used compression format and ONVIF wants to anticipate that migration, as well as the future needs of the industry.
SIW: Besides bandwidth and storage reduction, what other benefits does advanced compression provide for integrators and end-users?
Svensson: Bandwidth and storage are huge factors. The increased compression rate translates into decreased storage requirements on hard drives, less bandwidth usage and fewer switches – all of which reduce overall costs of system ownership. H.265 also delivers a lower bitrate than H.264, which is relevant to end-users and integrators because the lower bitrate reduces strain on hardware and can reduce playback issues.
SIW: What questions might integrators have and/or what do they need to know about compression?
Svensson: It’s very important that the compression format that is used is supported in all of the different components of their system: cameras, desktop computers on which the VMS is running and the VMS itself. It is also good for end-users and integrators to understand the basics of video compression. Having a basic understanding of compression allows you to tweak settings to reduce bandwidth usage even more. Many cameras come with default settings that you can change to ultimately reduce costs.
For example, within the ONVIF specification, integrators can change the settings that determine how often a new I-frame is needed. An I-frame is a complete frame, like a jpg. In between I-frames are P- and B- frames. With ONVIF, you will be able to change the number of P-frames per I-frames for additional bandwidth reduction.
SIW: What actions should they take to improve efficiency, reduce costs, provide a more effective and efficient surveillance system, etc.?
Svensson: As I said previously, using products that employ H.265 compression will reduce costs through bandwidth reduction, as will changing default settings on cameras, which are often conservative. Having a basic understanding of compression formats really does give integrators an advantage because they can reduce bandwidth even more by tweaking default settings.
SIW: What else is worth noting about video compression from an integrator standpoint?
Svensson: ONVIF’s new media service that will be implemented with Profile T, is future-proof. So, when new compression formats are released in the future, ONVIF will be ready to adopt them and can do so very quickly. That flexibility will definitely help integrators. ONVIF strives to have the first overall Profile T draft specification ready for public review as a ‘Release Candidate’ by the end of June 2017. More information on the new profile will be released by ONVIF as it is developed.
It is also worth noting that H.265 enhancements will likely be developed by camera manufacturers to further reduce bandwidth, as was the case with H.264. These enhancements will analyze which parts of an image are most important and adjust local levels of compressions accordingly.
