Bitmovin HDR: HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision in production

How Bitmovin handles HDR encoding — HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision profile 5 and 8.4. Metadata signaling, ABR ladder considerations, and the licensing implications for Dolby Vision.

Feature deep-dive · Bitmovin·hdr·Bitmovin ↗

HDR encoding is one of the dimensions where Bitmovin's codec depth pays off. For operators delivering premium VOD or broadcast-grade live with HDR mastered content, Bitmovin handles the metadata signaling, color-space management, and Dolby Vision licensing complexity that often stalls other vendors. The honest framing: HDR is hard, and Bitmovin has done more of the hard parts than most.

What Bitmovin actually has

Bitmovin Encoding supports HDR10 (the open static-metadata standard, broadcast-ubiquitous), HDR10+ (dynamic metadata extension, Samsung/Amazon-aligned), HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma, BBC + NHK broadcast standard), and Dolby Vision profile 5 (single-layer, mobile-friendly) and profile 8.4 (backward-compatible with HDR10). Master-display + max-cll + max-fall metadata is properly signaled in HEVC bitstreams. Color-space conversion between BT.2020 and BT.709 for SDR fallback renditions is handled automatically. Dolby Vision encoding requires Dolby licensing, which Bitmovin handles as part of their contract — meaningful, because direct Dolby licensing is gated and expensive.

Where it's the right fit

Studio-grade content delivery where Dolby Vision is a contractual requirement. Premium OTT operators with HDR-capable smart TVs as the dominant audience. Sports broadcasters delivering HDR to set-top-box audiences (HLG is the dominant broadcast HDR standard). Workflows with mastered HDR content from production where the metadata must survive ingest-to-delivery without color shift.

Where the gaps show up

HDR encoding is encoder-bound; Bitmovin's HDR handling adds modest cost over their SDR encoding, but at scale it's not free. Operators with mostly-SDR libraries where HDR is occasional may overpay for HDR-capable encoding pricing across all encodes. NVENC HDR support is encoder-version-dependent — older NVIDIA driver versions have specific limitations on HDR signaling that Bitmovin handles via software fallback (slower).

Pricing implications

Dolby Vision encoding adds a per-asset surcharge to cover Bitmovin's Dolby licensing. HDR10 and HLG are typically included at no premium. At committed-volume contracts the Dolby Vision premium is bundled; at sales-list it's per-encode metered.

The MpegFlow angle

MpegFlow ships HDR10 + HLG support in the 2026 Q2 encoder MVP via libx265 metadata signaling. Dolby Vision arrives in 2026 Q4 alongside DRM packaging — they share the encoder licensing complexity. The orchestration angle: HDR jobs route to dedicated worker pools with the codec licensing setup, away from the bulk H.264/HEVC pool. Audit log records the HDR metadata produced for each rendition so QC can verify metadata survives delivery.

Topics

hdr
hdr10
hlg
dolby-vision
codec
Bitmovin