According to foreign media reports, the German research institute Flawn Hof Institute for Integrated Circuits (hereinafter referred to as "Flawn Hof Institute"), which invented MP3 playback format, announced the termination of the authorization of MP3-related patents. This means that the organization will no longer support this music storage format, and the MP3 format will soon die out.
According to Fraunhofer Association, MP3 format was abandoned because there is a better alternative, namely Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) format, which has become the de facto standard for many video and audio services. Although it is a pity that MP3 format will end, it is inevitable with the development of technology and the change of tools.
The popularity of MP3
MP3 format was born in 1980s, which revolutionized the way users listened to music and changed the development of music purchase. Music can quickly enter the digital age, and MP3 format has undoubtedly contributed.
In order to promote MP3 format, Fraunhofer Association initially gave away free software to encourage users to convert songs on CD into MP3 files on computers. At that time, although the sound quality of CD format was better, MP3 was sought after because of its small storage capacity and faster download speed when the memory was only a few hundred megabytes, which also enabled users at that time to download music through the network. With the wide application of MP3 format, it has gradually become the mainstream audio format. MP3, which is small, portable and low-cost, has also defeated CD and become the first choice for new music players.
However, the popularity of MP3 has also brought problems. First of all, this has brought more digital piracy. According to the survey 1999 released by the Recording Industry Association of America in March, the popularity of MP3 is the most important reason for young consumers to reduce the purchase of music CDs. The problem of music piracy caused by MP3 led to the boycott of the five major record companies in the world at that time. In addition, the popularity of MP3 has also dealt a heavy blow to the traditional recording industry.
In terms of MP3 hardware, with the production of the first MP3 player in Korea in 1997, the brand of MP3 player in Korea has long been the main force in this field. At the peak of history in 2002, South Korea's MP3 accounted for more than 40% of the global market. With the popularity of MP3 players, the sales of CD walkman began to decline year by year. However, South Korean MP3 was subsequently banned by Apple ipod.
After the Ipod was launched on 200 1, Apple also launched iTunes in 2003 to provide users with online audition and music purchase. In the digital wave of the music industry, CDs and tapes gradually withdrew from the historical stage.
By 2004, the global market share of ipod reached 70%. Ipod and Itunes brought Apple $654.38 billion in revenue. At this time, the market share of South Korea's MP3 has dropped to 20%.
However, with the launch of iPhone in 2007, smart phones gradually became popular, and music players almost became an essential function of smart phones, which led to the gradual marginalization of music players. With the decline of the whole player market, only MP3 with the function of listening to songs will inevitably decline.
Take the ipod as an example. IPod sales declined for the first time since 2009, two years after the release of the iPhone. By fiscal year 20 1 1, iPhone sales exceeded iPod for the first time. After the launch of 20 14, iPhone 6 and Apple Watch, Apple official website removed the iPod classic. Starting from 20 15, Apple will no longer provide iPod business income separately in the financial report. While the sales of IPod declined, MP3 music player brands such as Patriot, iriver, Taipower, Innovation and Blue Devil were not spared, and they began to transform into tablet computers, mobile power supplies and smart phones.
Behind the decline of MP3 is the awakening of copyright awareness.
While MP3 players are gradually marginalized, MP3 format is also facing challenges.
With the development of network technology and memory chip technology, mass storage has become relatively common, and people are less sensitive to the storage advantages of MP3. On the other hand, with the continuous improvement of the quality of life, people have higher and higher requirements for sound quality. This is also an important reason for the gradual decline of MP3 format.
According to Fraunhofer Institute, AAC audio format is considered as a substitute for MP3 format. When transmitting streaming TV and audio broadcast, it has higher efficiency and better audio quality, while the bit rate is much lower than MP3. Besides being more powerful in music playing, some analysts think that AAC format can replace MP3 format because it can provide better copyright protection. Previously, due to the chaotic fragmentation of MP3 copyright, the cost of infringement was very low, which greatly contributed to the rampant piracy in the music industry.
With the music market paying more and more attention to the protection of music copyright, it is almost inevitable that MP3 will be eliminated. In China, after the National Copyright Administration issued the Notice on Ordering Online Music Service Providers to Stop Unauthorized Dissemination of Music Works in 20 15, the copyright protection of genuine music became more and more important. With the integration of major music platforms, the copyright wars of giants such as Tencent and Netease have become increasingly fierce. Under such a trend, copyright protection will be an inevitable trend.
Some analysts believe that MP3 format will be replaced by AAC. As far as the current product market is concerned, Apple may be the most favorable company. Although MP3 player is out of date, compared with similar players, the product recognition of Ipod is still very high. In addition, from the beginning, the music format provided by Apple to users was AAC. After the MP3 format exits the market, almost no format changes are needed.