Partners since 2015 as part of the Alliance for Open Media, Google and Samsung work alongside other Tech giants (including Nvidia, Apple, Netflix, Microsoft, Meta, Huawei and Intel) to develop technologies open source and standardized IT. It was in this context that Samsung first began working internally, then with the help of Google, on 3D audio in order to develop royalty-free technology capable of simulating surround sound.
Started in 2020, this work now results in what the two firms call the IAMF, for “Immersive Audio Model and Formats“. This alternative to Dolby Atmos technology could, due to its open nature, integrate many products over the coming years, ranging from televisions to soundbars, including headphones and connected speakers.
“Samsung and Google’s respective device and content expertise made them ideal partners to create IAMF technology“, comments one of Samsung Research’s executives in a press release published in early November by the Korean giant. “By partnering to develop this unprecedented technology, we are paving the way for consumers to enjoy 3D audio at home“.
A promising technology, especially for its openness
Despite what Samsung suggests, spatial audio, or 3D, is not new. It has been used for years by the Dolby Atmos and DTS:X standards, at least to some extent. The real novelty with the IAMF is that this technology will now be able to develop outside the confines of the American Dolby and a few other big names in the sector. Completely open source, this new codec was also adopted by the Alliance for Open Media last October… paving the way for support by many brands, and potentially by a host of services and content.
“To allow people to freely create content using 3D audio technology, it must be open to everyone. Providing a comprehensive open source framework for 3D audio, from creation to delivery and playback, will enable even more diverse audio content experiences in the future“, comments Samsung.
On the technological level strictly speaking, the IAMF is banking on vertical sound (to allow better immersion), but also on an analysis of the audio scene boosted by AI, and finally on parameters customizable by the end user . Thanks to AI, Samsung explains that the IAMF is notably capable of adjusting the sound dynamically (to better bring out dialogue in a film, for example), or even taking into account the environment of the user to adapt to it as best as possible.