Ogg Vorbis vs. MP3 Stage is Set

The public's choice of digital audio formats is about to become quite a bit more interesting. Ogg Vorbis has just hit beta with "Release Candidate 2," likely to be the last test version before Vorbis comes out with an official 1.0 release. Timely indeed, as we'll soon be seeing the launch of three subscription-based digital download services, each using their own proprietary format. Add in the other major players, like Windows Media and RealAudio, and you've got yourself a mess of formats that do the same basic thing, but no standards.

We all know the standard for file-sharing is MP3, which became possible because the Fraunhofer Institute made it freely available from the get-go (they will now be charging royalties and licensing fees for the use of the technology), so developers were able to tinker around and experiment with the technology, sharing their ideas with other developers in a non-proprietary environment. Companies like RealNetworks and Microsoft had restrictions on how outside developers can employ their technology, which in turn stagnated their own technologies.

Ogg Vorbis may pull off the exact same feat as MP3 did in its infancy, but one must wonder if the public will want to deal with one more format, especially when they've already got hundreds of MP3's on the computers. It will be very interesting to see how this unfolds....