UPnP_DLNA_White_Paper

NetworkedDigitalMediaStandardsAUPnP/DLNAOverviewAllegroSoftwareDevelopmentCorporation1740MassachusettsAvenueBoxborough,MA01719“digitalentertainment”hasledthemtodemanddeviceinteroperability,sothattheycaneasilysharetheirpictures,audio,andvideothroughouttheirhome.Inresponse,theleadingmanufacturersintheConsumerElectronics,MobileDevice,andPersonalComputermarketplaceshavebandedtogethertocreateaninteroperabilitysolutionfortheirdiverseproducts.ThisorganizationistheDigitalLivingNetworkAlliance(DLNA),anditsmissionissimple–seamlessintegrationoftheconsumer’sdigitaldevicesandcontentthroughoutthehome.Inordertoachieveitsgoalasquicklyandpainlesslyaspossible,DLNAelectedtobasetheirsolutiononestablishedindustrystandardsdevelopedbystandardsbodiesandspecialinterestgroupssuchastheInternetEngineeringTaskForce(IETF),WorldWideWebConsortium(W3C),MotionPictureExpertsGroup(MPEG),andUniversalPlugandPlayForum(UPnP).Thus,theDLNAInteroperabilityGuidelinesrequirealldevicestohaveanEthernet,WiFi,orBlueToothnetworkconnection,useTCP/IPfornetworking,andimplementHTMLandSOAPformediatransportandmanagement.MediaFormatsarealsospecified,withJPEG,LPCM,andMPEG2supportrequiredforimage,audio,andvideodevicesrespectively.Tocomplementitsdetailedinteroperabilityguidelines,DLNAalsodevelopedacomprehensivecertificationprocessandlogoprogramtoensureconsumersthatproductsbasedonDLNAstandardsdelivertheexperiencethatconsumersexpect–theyjustwork!UnderstandingDLNA4AllegroSoftwareDevelopmentCorporationIntroductionTheRiseoftheDigitalHomeThepastfewyearswitnessedthestartofamajorrevolutioninthehome.Consumersbegantogo“digital”,acquiring,enjoying,andmanaginganevergrowingvolumeofdigitalcontent–imagesfromtheirdigitalcamerasandcellphones,audiodownloadedfromInternetmusicstoresand“ripped”fromCD’sonahomePC,videofromtheirTivoandDVD’sfortheirDVDPlayers.AndwiththattransitioncomesanewrequiredfeatureforthedevicemanufacturersintheConsumerElectronics(CE),MobileDevice,andPersonalComputer(PC)domains–interoperability.Consumerswantanenvironmentwhereallthedevicesinthehomearecapableofsharingdigitalcontent—regardlessofthesource—acrossthehomenetwork.Andnotonethatrequiresatechnicalwizardtoinstallandconfigure.Theyshouldbeabletoeasilyconnectalloftheirequipmentandreadilysharetheirgrowinglibrariesofdigitalcontent.Inshort,anydevice,anytime,anyplace,andanycontent.ThisvisionofthedigitalhomeisonethatintegratesthePC,CE,andMobileDeviceworldsthroughaseamless,interoperablenetwork,andprovidesauniqueopportunityformanufacturersandconsumersalike.Itisalsoonethatrequiresacommonsetofindustrydesignguidelinestoallowcompaniestoparticipateintheevolvingmarketplace,whilepreservingtheabilitytodifferentiateproductsviainnovation,simplicity,andvalue.TheDigitalLivingNetworkAlliance(DLNA)wasformedtoaddresstheneedforacommonsetofindustrydesignguidelines.TheDLNAHomeNetworkedDeviceInteroperabilityGuidelineswerecreatedbyauniquecross-industryeffortthatcombinedtheeffortsofover100ConsumerElectronics,PCandMobileDevicecompaniesfromaroundtheworldwhoworkedtogetherwiththeaimofachievingtheworld’sfirstsubstantialapproachtotrueinteroperabilitybetweenpersonalcomputers,consumerelectronics,andmobiledevices.TheInteroperabilityGuidelinesprovideproductdeveloperswithalong-termarchitecturalview,plusspecificguidanceforIP-networkedplatforms,devicesandapplicationsinthehome.October26,2006UnderstandingDLNA5TheEvolutionofDLNATheabilityofDLNAtodeliverableworkableinteroperabilityguidelinesinlessthan12monthsislargelyduetothepioneeringeffortsofthe