Book excerpt: Here is a fully readable introduction to the basic technologies, infrastructures, costs, and applications for digital audio and video compression. Delivering a concise account of compression's terms, techniques, and tricks in an easy-to-read style, it covers the basic principles underlying digital signal processing and compression; how human beings see and hear; how audio and video are reproduced; all of the existing and emerging compression standards; video and audio compression techniques; and compression and reproduction requirements of different applications, including videoconferencing.