Eclipsa Audio Will Be Included on Galaxy Devices with Android 16 Update

Google and Samsung have announced the introduction of a new spatial audio format called “Eclipsa Audio”, which will be available on Android devices (including Galaxy devices) with the upcoming Android 16 release. This format is a royalty-free alternative to Dolby Atmos. Which means it will allow creators and device manufacturers to use it without additional costs.

The Eclipsa Audio format is based on the IAMF framework developed collaboratively by Google, Samsung, and other members of the Open Media Alliance. Alongside the announcement, Google revealed plans to release a free Eclipsa Audio plugin for AVID Pro Tools Digital Audio Workstation.

Eclipsa Audio will allow Android developers to decode this new audio format in MP4 files using the media3-decoder-iamf module included in Android’s Media3 1.5.0 APIs. Additionally, an open-source reference renderer for standalone playback of Eclipsa Audio is already available, and creators will soon be able to upload videos featuring the new audio format to YouTube.