1990s


1990

George Lucas patents the THX film sound system.

1991

The specifications of the MPEG-1 layer 3, better known as MP3, for the coding of digital audio are approved as ISO/IEC standard.

1992

Sony introduces the MiniDisc.

1993

Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park, the first film with the DTS (Digital Sound) system.

1997

EBU/UER (European Union of Radio Diffusion) specifies the rules of BWF (Broadcast Wave Format) for the production of digital audio on radio and television.

1999

The Napster music archive distribution system appears (in MP3 format) through P2P (peer-to-peer) networks, which made downloading music on Internet enormously popular.