Netflix has officially confirmed a major step forward in video delivery technology: the AV1 codec now powers nearly 30% of the company's streamed content. It is a large-scale effort to cut the network bandwidth viewers consume while keeping the picture sharp. The move shows that Netflix, one of AV1's main backers, is continuing to expand the technology across its platforms while preparing for new projects built on the upcoming successor.
How AV1 Spread Across Platforms
Support for the AV1 codec has grown considerably since its launch in 2018. Platforms large and small quickly adopted the format to make better use of internet connections. In a detailed post on Medium, Netflix recently explained how it helped drive the codec's creation and how it brought AV1 to each type of device.
For context, AV1 was created by the Alliance for Open Media (AOMedia) in 2018. The group brings together some of the world's leading tech giants, including Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, Mozilla, Nvidia, and many others. AV1 was designed as the successor to Google's VP9 format. Its main strength is far more efficient data compression than the widely used H.264 format, and it is completely royalty-free, unlike the costly H.265/HEVC standard.
Over the past few years, AV1 decoding and encoding support has spread quickly to modern mobile devices, PC graphics chips, and other hardware. During that time, everyone from large companies to independent content creators has praised the performance gains the technology delivers.
Netflix began using software AV1 decoding on Android devices in 2020. It started there because of Android's flexibility and the overwhelming popularity of mobile devices among streaming viewers. By using the "dav1d" library, which developers had already optimized for Arm-based mobile chips, Netflix significantly improved video playback quality for users, even on spotty mobile connections.
Bringing AV1 to smart TVs and other home entertainment devices, however, was a more complicated story, since it requires hardware decoding support. Netflix had to certify system-on-chip (SoC) vendors step by step. The company rolled out the codec on TVs in late 2021, added web browser support in 2022, and expanded to Apple's M3 and A17 Pro chips in 2023.
Film Grain Handling and the Road to AV2
Earlier this year, Netflix launched AV1 HDR streaming using HDR10+ technology. The format now covers 85% of the company's HDR catalog, and Netflix plans to move all of its HDR content to AV1 over the next few months. That should give viewers a more vivid picture.
One interesting technical feature Netflix described is AV1's smarter handling of film grain through a technology called Film Grain Synthesis. Instead of compressing the grain (the noise), which eats up a lot of space, the technology removes the grain from the content before compression and then recreates it in the decoder on the viewer's device. This sharply reduces the bandwidth used while preserving the artistic quality of the film. The company also hopes the codec will improve live streaming with custom graphics overlays and boost cloud gaming performance.
Looking ahead, AOMedia recently announced plans to release the AV2 standard before the end of this year. This next-generation codec will compress even more efficiently than AV1 and support advanced technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), split-screen streaming, and more.
The updated codec will become especially useful as Netflix starts tapping the vast library of new and old content from Warner Bros. The streaming giant recently agreed to acquire the renowned studio for a record 82.7 billion USD. The high-profile acquisition will give Netflix control of hugely popular pop culture franchises, including Game of Thrones, the DC Comics universe, HBO, and several well-known video game studios.
