Samsung is not speaking about Eclipsa Audio at CES...

Earlier than CES 2025 kicked off in Las Vegas, Samsung announced that its spatial audio collaboration with Google can be accessible on its 2025 TVs and soundbars. Finer particulars on the platform had been noticeably absent from that announcement, with the corporate solely noting that the 3D Eclipsa Audio can be accessible this yr for YouTube content material creators. There was additionally the overall rationalization that the platform would allow creators “to regulate audio knowledge reminiscent of the situation and depth of sounds, together with spatial reflections, to create an immersive three-dimensional sound expertise,” in keeping with the press launch.

If that feels like Dolby Atmos to you, that is what I assume Samsung and Google are attempting to copy right here. And if that is the case, if Samsung actually desires its personal immersive audio commonplace, there is a backstory value revisiting right here. In 2023, Samsung and Google first revealed their spatial audio ambitions. On the time, Samsung mentioned its analysis division had been engaged on 3D audio since 2020 and the primary fruits of the collaboration was the open-source Immersive Audio Mannequin and Codecs (IAMF) adopted by the Alliance for Open Media (AOM) in October 2023.

There’s additionally the truth that Samsung would not supply Dolby Imaginative and prescient on its TVs. As a substitute, the corporate makes use of HDR10+, an open-source and royalty-free platform for encoding HDR metadata. And in that 2023 audio announcement, Samsung Analysis’s WooHyun Nam defined that 3D sound know-how wanted to be open to everybody too. “Offering a whole open-source framework for 3D audio, from creation to supply and playback, will permit for much more various audio content material experiences sooner or later,” he mentioned.

Samsung at the moment helps Dolby Atmos on its soundbars, together with its flagship Q990 series and the newly introduced QS700F. It feels like the corporate not desires to pay to license Atmos from Dolby. And with a view to nonetheless supply immersive 3D audio on its merchandise, this collaboration with Google goals to construct the choice. It is value noting that AOM counts Amazon, Apple and Netflix amongst its members, along with Google, Samsung and others. The group’s AV1 video format was launched in 2018 and is now used throughout Netflix, YouTube, Twitch and different websites.

The weird factor about all of that is that nobody from Samsung desires to speak about Eclipsa Audio. I attended a number of occasions and product demos that the corporate hosted this week and the response after I requested about it was both “we’ve not been informed something” or “let me see if I can discover somebody who can discuss it.” The latter, after all, by no means manifested a “somebody” or a follow-up. I even requested for a rep to inform me if the corporate wasn’t prepared to debate particulars and by no means heard again on that both.

Probably the most detailed rationalization I’ve seen this week came from Arm, which is outwardly additionally engaged on the event of Eclipsa Audio alongside Samsung and Google. The chip designer mentioned that Eclipsa is a multi-channel audio encompass sound format that is constructed on IMAF. Vertical and horizontal channels will create the immersive sound, with the purpose of constructing motion pictures, music and tv exhibits extra compelling in your front room. Once more, that is precisely what Dolby Atmos already does.

Arm additional defined that Eclipsa Audio can routinely alter sound primarily based on the scene and that there might be a level of customization for customers. The bitstream can comprise as much as 28 enter channels that may be fastened (devices or microphones) or dynamic (automobiles in film scenes), with assist for LPCM, AAC, FLAC and Opus codecs. Binaural rendering can be accessible for earbuds and headphones, and the brand new tech might be accessible to content material creators utilizing shopper units of their workflow.

Up to now, Samsung and Google have solely listed YouTube because the platform or service the place Eclipsa Audio content material might be accessible. If the duo actually desires to compete with Dolby Atmos, that checklist must broaden shortly. Plus, Dolby already has the model recognition and large adoption in each the audio and residential theater classes for Atmos. It is even available in cars.

Samsung mentioned in its pre-CES announcement that it and Google would work with the Telecommunications Know-how Affiliation (TTA) to develop a certification program for units that assist Eclipsa Audio. So, it looks as if severe groundwork has been laid to get this know-how on units, beginning with Samsung’s personal 2025 TVs and soundbars. However, as we noticed with Sony 360 Reality Audio and the early days of Dolby Atmos Music, it might probably take time to construct out a compelling library of content material. Which means Samsung will probably must hold reminding us that Eclipsa Audio is a factor, even when it would not have rather more to say.