Samsung continues to pile pressure on Dolby, with the announcement of a second generation of the Eclipsa Audio format, the royalty-free immersive audio alternative to Dolby Atmos. 

The news was shared at a media briefing at Samsung’s Suwon corporate headquarters, in South Korea, which Channel News attended.

While the company outlined its latest technical roadmap, there was no opportunity to hear the upgraded technology first-hand.

Developed in partnership with Google, Eclipsa Audio is based on Ambisonics, a spatial audio technology capable of rendering sound in every direction: front, back, side, above and below.

The result is a 360-degree, enveloping soundstage that can adapt across multiple platforms, from soundbars and TVs to gaming consoles and smartphones.

First unveiled at CES 2025, Eclipsa was conceived as an open alternative to proprietary spatial audio systems.

The newly announced upgrade, Version 2.0, is expected to feature (and hopefully be heard) at CES 2026.

Eclipsa 2.0 introduces several key advancements over its predecessor, including a greater number of supported audio channels, previously capped at 28. The final figure has yet to be confirmed.

The upgrade should grant content creators greater flexibility and realism when mixing and placing sound elements within a scene.

Samsung also announced the Eclipsa Audio Certification Programme, designed to ensure consistent quality and compatibility across devices and streaming platforms. The company says its own certified TV models will be the first to meet the programme’s performance requirements.

Eclipsa is built on the Immersive Audio Model and Formats (IAMF) specification, formally adopted in 2023 by the Alliance for Open Media, a consortium whose members include Samsung Research, Google, Netflix and Meta.

With backing from Samsung, Harman and YouTube, Eclipsa 2.0 is increasingly looking like a credible, open-source alternative to proprietary standards such as Dolby Atmos and DTS:X for delivering immersive sound across consumer electronics, streaming platforms and professional audio sectors.

Samsung says its goal is to make high-quality, spatially accurate sound more accessible across the industry, without the licensing costs that have traditionally influenced the immersive audio landscape.