Cannes Film Festival 2025
A successful preview of the new VIVID audiovisual standard presented by the UHD World Association (UWA)
From 14 to 20 May 2025, the UHD World Association (UWA) took pride of place on the CONNECT hub at the Cannes Film Festival's Marché du Film, a meeting space dedicated to technological innovation in the world of cinema and audiovisual. It was an opportunity to unveil the latest advances in the VIVID standard, a real revolution in the audiovisual experience, which was the subject of exceptional demonstrations, exclusive events and numerous exchanges with industry professionals.
A strategic panel on the standards of the future
The panel "The Future of Audiovisual Standards", held on May 15, was a highlight of the festival, highlighting VIVID, the new royalty-free standard, designed to meet new needs in terms of visual and sound quality, in a multi-screen environment. VIVID is not limited to simply improving image quality: it ensures that the artistic intent is faithfully reproduced, thanks to personalized color and luminance metadata for each image, adapted to each type of screen, whether it is TVs, smartphones or in-vehicle screens.
In his introduction, the President of FICAM, Didier Huck, underlined the importance of the standardization of metadata in this increasingly interconnected industry. Hans-Nikolas Locher, CST's Director of Development, spoke of these "de facto" market standards like VIVID, when manufacturers and technology companies work together to improve the customer proposition, in an ecosystem where content and technology are aligned.
An unprecedented immersive experience on a Samsung VIVID certified display
For the first time in Europe, visitors were able to experience VIVID-encoded content on a latest-generation, VIVID-certified Samsung UHD display. Among the works screened: excerpts from the series Bardot (Fédération Studio France on France Télévisions), the documentary #Hvaldimir (Mediawan-Imagissime / Miluna on Canal+), the series Winter Palace (Oble / Point Prod on RTS / Netflix), as well as Asian trailers, which enthused the professionals present.
At the same time, the CONNECT area hosted many live demonstrations and business meetings, with particular interest from the Chinese film delegation, who came to discuss these latest audio/video innovations and market opportunities.
Large-scale deployment of VIVID already underway in Asia
The impact of VIVID is not limited to the presentation at the show: the figures speak for themselves. To date, more than 30 brands have certified 1127 models across six device categories (TVs, smartphones, tablets, IPTV boxes, PCs, projectors), with strong adoption by mid-to-high-end Android smartphones and more than 70 million IPTV boxes integrating HDR VIVID.
In terms of content, more than 100,000 hours of video have been encoded in the VIVID standard, including major events such as the Olympic Games and FIFA, TV series, films, and live events. More than 2 million audio streams have been made for Audio VIVID, a revolutionary spatial audio technology, which is also gaining momentum in vehicle integration, including the AITO M9 SUV, a model equipped with Huawei's Smart Cockpit, incorporating VIVID Audio for an immersive sound experience.
The integration of AI at the heart of the VIVID Audio codec is also a differentiating factor. It enables more immersive 3D audio rendering and more efficient compression, while adapting to the characteristics of displays and listening environments in real time.
The future of AV is being built with VIVID
The success of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival is a testament to the central role that VIVID and UWA are playing in redefining the standards of the audiovisual industry. As the VIVID standard continues its global rollout, UWA invites AV professionals to join this technological revolution by becoming a member, to shape the future of content creation and delivery.