Decoder Description Syntax for fully configurable video coding

Fully configurable video coding is a novel approach to video compression in which a video decoder can be dynamically constructed based on a decoder description. This paper presents a new syntax for describing video decoder functionality and structure, namely, the decoder description syntax (DDS). The DDS is a platform-independent syntax that can define all aspects of a video decoder in terms of basic processing instructions. We present examples of video decoding functions implemented in the DDS and show that flexible configuration, reconfiguration, and decoding of video can be achieved using a real-time prototype universal video decoder.