What’s MPEG-21 ? (a short summary of available papers by OCCAMM)

MPEG-21 Digital Item –the standardised representation of “a work” in digital form –it may have a hiererachical and dynamic structure (it could be composed of other Digital Items changing over time) –it can show various configurations depending on certain conditions (think of active Web pages) –it can include both content (audio, picture, text, etc.) and associated information (descriptions, usage rules, references, etc.) User –whatever entity interacts with Digital Items (to create, modify, transfer, use them, etc.) –performs transactions with other Users, during which one or more Digital Items are acted upon and some “value” (money, information, etc.) is transferred MPEG-21 Foundation Concepts

User MPEG-21 Digital Item MPEG-21 Digital Item MPEG-21 Digital Item MPEG-21 Digital Item transaction $ $ $ $ $ $ $ MPEG-21’s Universe

It’s the set of normative items (architectures, formats, algorithms, protocols, interfaces, etc.) that allow Users to interact with Digital Items in a standard way and in accordance with the following principles –full interoperability across all terminals and networks –easily understandable commands and procedures –protection of intellectual property –protection of privacy –clear and unambiguous usage rules –identification of all interacting entities –traceability of all events and processes The needed normative items may be –already available inside MPEG -> MPEG-21 endorses them –already available outside MPEG -> MPEG-21 adopts them –not yet existing but within MPEG’s mandate -> MPEG-21develops them Normative items outide MPEG’s mandate (es. regarding payment infrastructures) are not part of the MPEG-21 Multimedia Framework. However, MPEG-21 specifies appropriate interfaces with other frameworks MPEG-21 Multimedia Framework

MPEG-21 Digital Item MPEG-21 Digital Item MPEG-21 Digital Item MPEG-21 Digital Item User MPEG-21 Multimedia Framework another framework $ $ $

Identify the general problem to be addressed, perform a state-of-art survey and select specific areas where an intervention is deemed to be needed, proposing the relevant “work items” to ISO (it’s where they are at now) –Define a number of hypothetical operational scenarios (use cases) –From there, derive high level requirements, representing User expectations as regards the Multimedia Framework –Identify the functions that are needed to fulfil those requirements, starting from high level functions then going down into detail –Such functions have been grouped according to 7 categories, each one representing a specific work area for MPEG-21 Content Representation Digital Item Declaration Content Management and Usage Content Identification and Description Intellectual Property Management and Protection Terminals and Networks Event Reporting How MPEG-21 Proceeds

MPEG-21 Work Areas MPEG-21 Multimedia Framework Digital Item Declaration Content Representation Content Management and Usage Content Identification and Description IPMP Terminals and Networks Event Reporting

Goal –establish an abstract, flexible and interoperable scheme for Digital Item declaration Criteria –content and descriptive data shall be fully separable –the defined scheme shall be applicable to all content and descriptive data types –the scheme shall allow constructing composite and reconfigurable Items (e.g. recursive incapsulation of Digital Items) –it shall be possible to search and navigate a Digital Item’s tree structure in an efficient way –it shall be possible for a User to build his/her own “collections” of Digital Items including customised references and comments –the scheme shall allow for unambiguous identification of a Digital Item and its components, and permit revision of such identification information, in a open and extensible manner Digital Item Declaration

Goals –define interfaces and protocols for Digital Item search, store and management –define interfaces and protocols for management of User profiles and Digital Item usage data –define interfaces e protocols enabling use of intelligent agents within the Multimedia Framework Criteria –the Multimedia Framework shall provide means for a User to locate Digital Items of interest wherever they are, taking also into account his/her personal preferences –different Digital Item management systems shall be totally interopeable –the Multimedia Framework shall provide means for the management of a Digital Item life cycle according to reconfigurable policies –the Multimedia Framework shall provide means for tracing all modifications that a Digital Item incurs over time –it shall be possible at any instant for a User to know where all the copies of all the Digital Items he/she owns are located and what usage rules apply to each copy –the Multimedia Framework shall provide means for creating, modifying and managing User profiles and Digital Item usage data, as well as to exchange such information with other frameworks Content Management and Usage

Goals –define a common framework for the identification and description of Digital Items, their components and related information –define appropriate interfaces with existing identification systems –define identification methods when nothing exists yet (e.g. for indentification of people and rights) Criteria –account for the needs stemming from of the largest possible number of business models –allow for multiple identification data generation and management methods –ensure persistent association between identification data and Digital Items –standardise access to identification data, including procedures for data insertion, modification or extraction –ensure protection of identification data –allow for seamless integration, efficient organization e full interoperability among identification data generated by different identification systems (e.g. existing systems vs new ones) Content Identification and Description

Goals –define a “trusted framework” of IPMP systems –define methods for norms and rules codification –define interfaces with platforms that provide financial transactions in association to rights management –provide a uniform technical and organisational foundation for a “Domain Governance Organisation” that governs (on behalf of all Users) the behaviour of devices, systems and applications involved in interacting with Digital Items and services that provide transactional support within the Multimedia Framework Criteria –identify and liaise with potential “Domain Governance Organisations” and in general with relevant “governing organisations” –endorse, possibly with adaptations, the solutions identified by MPEG for protecting MPEG-4 content and MPEG-7 descriptors, and extend them to protect al types of Digital Items –adopt, possibly with adaptations and extentions, existing languages allowing formal description of contractual clauses and develop new laguages as needed (e.g. to allow formal expression of laws, governamental policies, etc.) IPMP

The Domain Governance Organisations of MPEG-21

Goal –define programming interfaces and protocols that enable transparent access to Digital Items across a multiplicity of networks and devices; namely specify API and associated protocols for terminal Quality of Service (QoS) management NPI and associated protocols for network QoS management API and associated protocols for joint terminal and network QoS management rules for QoS negotiation and implementation API enabling QoS agent technologies Criteria –Users shall not be expected to know anything about the devices and channels through which they access Digital Items –Users shall only be presented with a clear offer specifying (in a non- technical fashion) what QoS is available for what price –portability of Digital Items across all types of terminals and networks shall be granted, possibly by implementing some form of content scalability –any conversion, scaling and adaptation performed on Digital Items to port them across different terminals and networks shall be totally transparent to the Users Terminals and Networks

MPEG-21 QoS Management

Goals –standardise metrics for performance of all reportable “events” within the Multimedia Framework –provide means of capturing and containing these metrics and interfaces that refer to identified Digital Items, environments, processes, transactions and Users Criteria –each and every interaction within the Multimedia Framework shall be treated as an “event” –different needs as regards access to recorded “events” originated by different Users and business models shall be accounted for (e.g. for marketing, advertising, financial reporting, network and service performance evaluation purposes, etc.) –particular attention shall be payed to “events” related to Digital Item integrity interactions involving Digital Items financial transactions among Users Digital Items delivery enforcement of Digital Item usage rules and applicable legislation –it shall be possible to make such metrics available to processes that run outside the MPEG-21 Multimedia Framework, for instance processes belonging to other frameworks that interoperate with MPEG-21 Event Reporting