e the bandwidth required by the content payload, formatting and framing; coding, compression standards, interface standards, the payload bitrate and how it makes up a multiplexed signal in a package that can be trans- ported across a common network access, transport, and egress facility. Overall, the content creation, distribution, and delivery process in- volves at least one or more repetitions of several functions or pro- cesses in the sequence shown in Figure 1-5. They include transformation, commonly referred to as compression, source coding, multiplexing, channel coding, and media interface. On the receiving side of the transmission channel, the compression, source coding, packetizing, and multiplexing functions are reversed and are called demultiplex, parse, decode, and decompress, respectively. Coding techniques and standards are rules and practices detailing how bits, bytes, files, and streams are organized and mapped to and from the transport or storage medium. Source coding means that the Transformation Source Channel Media (Compress) Coding Coding Interface Audio/Video In Packetize & Transformation Source Multiplex (Compress) Transmission Channel Transformation Source Channel Media (Decompress) Decoding Decoding Interface Audio / Video Out Demultiplex Transformation Source & Parse (Decompress) Decoding FIGURE 1-5 Program Content Transport Process 1 BASIC FUNDAMENTALS, DEFINITIONS, AND KEY TERMS output from an A/D converter is in bits and the bits are arranged in a form and fashion whereby the information they represent can be de- coded and made useful for all practical purposes as though it had never been encoded and decoded. Audio and video signals that have been encoded may be formatted into fixed or variable length frames. Source coding and compression techniques may be lossy or lossless. Lossy means that information in the original signal is thrown away, or not included in the coding scheme. Lossless means the decoded signal is a bit-accurate representation of the original digital information, no m