JPEG Gets a New Competitor

Microsoft has unveiled a new file format for end-to-end digital photography, called HD Photo, which offers better image quality, better preservation of data, and advanced features for digital-imaging applications.The company said this new next-generation digital image format provides the best solution for digital image editing and storage, and unleashes potential for digital photography on devices, applications, and services. Microsoft announced it intends to standardize the technology, and will be submitting HD Photo to an appropriate standards organization shortly.Talking about it, Amir Majidimehr, Corporate Vice President of Consumer Media Technology Group, Microsoft, said, "With HD Photo, we are taking a new approach to creating and editing photos that simply isn't available to photographers with today's formats. HD Photo fully preserves the original image fidelity with high dynamic range, while allowing for significant improvement in compression size."