H.264 licensing fees could jump from $100,000 to $4.5 million for streaming platforms

Via Licensing Alliance replaced the flat $100,000 annual H.264 cap with a tiered fee system starting in 2026.

The top tier charges $4.5 million per year for very large services such as OTTs with 100M+ subscribers or social platforms with 1B+ monthly users.

Tier 2 and Tier 3 fees are $3.375M and $2.25M, while only small or nascent platforms keep the $100,000 rate.

Companies holding active AVC licenses at the end of 2025 keep their prior terms, but previously unlicensed implementers face the new fees.