JPEG 2000: Wavelet-Based Image Compression Standard

JPEG 2000 is an image compression standard based on wavelet transform technology, created and maintained by the Joint Photographic Experts Group organization. It's broadly recognized as the next-generation image compression standard poised to replace the discrete cosine transform (DCT)-based JPEG format. JPEG 2000 files typically use .jp2 as their file extension with the MIME type image/jp2. Compared to DCT-based JPEG standards, JPEG 2000 achieves higher compression ratios while eliminating blocky artifacting commonly seen in traditional JPEG compression. The standard supports both lossy and lossless data compression, along with sophisticated progressive display and download capabilities. JPEG 2000 is an ISO standardized format with the official designation ISO/IEC 15444-1:2000. From a technical implementation perspective, JPEG 2000 utilizes discrete wavelet transform (DWT) algorithms that decompose images into multiple frequency subbands, followed by context-adaptive binary arithmetic coding for efficient compression. The EBCOT (Embedded Block Coding with Optimized Truncation) tier-2 coding strategy enables superior rate-distortion performance and flexible bitstream organization. Although JPEG 2000 offers significant technical advantages, as of 2006, its adoption on the internet remained limited with relatively few websites utilizing JPEG 2000 formatted images, and most web browsers lacking native support for JPEG 2000 file display. However, due to its ability to maintain high image quality while achieving good compression rates even in lossless mode, JPEG 2000 has gained substantial traction in medical imaging applications and other domains requiring high-fidelity image processing where quality preservation is critical.