Codecs in WebRTC
WebRTC codecs can be divided into mandatory (browsers that implement this technology must support them) and optional (not included in the standard, but added by some browsers).
Audio codecs
To compress audio traffic in WebRTC, mandatory codecs (Opus and G.711) and additional ones (G.722, iLBC, iSAC) are used.
Opus
Opus is an audio codec with low encoding latency (from 2.5ms to 60ms), variable bitrate support and high compression, which is ideal for audio streaming over variable bandwidth networks. It is the main audio codec for WebRTC. Opus is a hybrid solution that combines the best features of SILK (Voice Compression, Human Speech Distortion Elimination) and CELT (Audio Data Encoding) codecs. The codec is freely available, developers who use it do not need to pay royalties to copyright holders. Compared to other audio codecs, Opus certainly wins in many ways. In a number of parameters, it surpasses quite popular low bitrate codecs, such as MP3, Vorbis, AAC LC. Opus restores the "picture" of sound closer to the original than AMR-WB and Speex.
G.711
G.711 is an obsolete high bit rate (64 kbps) voice codec that is most commonly used in traditional telephony systems. The main advantage is the minimal computational load due to the use of lightweight compression algorithms. The codec has a low level of compression of voice signals and does not introduce additional audio delay during communication between users.
G.711 is supported by a large number of devices. Systems that use this codec are easier to use than those based on other audio codecs (G.723, G.726, G.728, etc.). In terms of quality, G.711 received a score of 4.2 in MOS testing (a score of 4-5 is the highest and means good quality, similar to the quality of voice traffic in ISDN and even higher).
G.722
G.722 is an ITU-T standard adopted in 1988 and is currently free. It can operate at 48, 56 and 64 kbps, providing sound quality at the level of G.711. And likewise G.711 is obsolete. Supported in Chrome, Safari and Firefox.
iLBC
iLBC (internet Low Bitrate Codec) is an open source narrowband speech codec. Available in Chrome and Safari. Due to the high compression of the stream, when using this codec, the load on the processor increases.
iSAC
iSAC (internet Speech Audio Codec) is a wideband speech audio codec, formerly proprietary, which is currently part of the WebRTC project, but is not required to be used. Supported in Chrome and Safari. The implementation for WebRTC uses an adaptive bitrate from 10 to 52 kbps with a sampling rate of 32 kHz.
Video codecs
The issues of choosing a video codec for WebRTC took developers several years, as a result, VP8 and H.264 were included in the standard. There are also implementations of optional video codecs (H.265, VP9, AV1).
VP8
VP8 is a free video codec with an open license, featuring high video stream decoding speed and increased resistance to frame loss. The codec is universal, it is easy to implement it into hardware platforms, so developers of video conferencing systems often use it in their products. Compatible with Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari (12.1+) browsers.
The paid H.264 video codec became known much earlier than its counterpart. This is a codec with a high degree of compression of the video stream while maintaining high video quality. The widespread use of this codec among hardware video conferencing systems suggests its use in the WebRTC standard. Compatible with Chrome (52+), Edge, Firefox (deprecated for Android 68+), and Safari.
VP9
VP9 is an open and free video compression standard developed in 2012 by Google. It is a development of the ideas embodied in VP8 and was subsequently expanded within the framework of AV1. Compatible with Chrome (48+) and Firefox browsers.
H.265
H.265 is a paid video codec that is the successor to H.264, providing the same visual quality at half the bitrate. This is achieved with more efficient compression algorithms. This codec currently competes with the free AV1.
AV1
AV1 is an open-source video compression codec designed specifically for delivering video over the Internet. Supported in Chrome (70+) and Firefox (67+).