CyberLink Corp. released PowerEncoder MPEG-4 AVC Edition, the consumer application to capture and convert video using the H.264 standard.

PowerEncoder MPEG-4 AVC Edition sets a new benchmark for video compression by dramatically improving the compression ratio of files without the visible image loss associated with traditional compression techniques.

CyberLink's own testing reduced a 1-hour, 88 GB uncompressed digital video clip into an H.264 file only 879 MB in size. The compression ratio achieved was 102:1, with the compressed video reduced to only 1% of its original size.

MPEG-4 AVC (H.264), also know as MPEG-4 part 10, has already been included by the DVD Forum as a mandatory capability of players for the HD-DVD format. Blu-ray DVDs will also incorporate the H.264 standard.

"CyberLink PowerEncoder MPEG-4 AVC Edition is for anyone who is looking for a way to capture and compress video while retaining the quality of their original files," said Alice H. Chang, CEO of CyberLink. "By converting files to the H.264 format, users can save huge amounts of storage space, whether storing on a hard disk, posting files on the Internet, or burning data to DVDs."

From mi2n