<s>
LAME	B-Algorithm
is	O
a	O
software	O
encoder	B-General_Concept
that	O
converts	O
digital	O
audio	O
into	O
the	O
MP3	B-Application
Audio	I-Application
coding	O
format	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
LAME	B-Algorithm
is	O
a	O
free	B-Application
software	I-Application
project	O
that	O
was	O
first	O
released	O
in	O
1998	O
,	O
and	O
has	O
incorporated	O
many	O
improvements	O
since	O
then	O
,	O
including	O
an	O
improved	O
psychoacoustic	O
model	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
encoder	B-General_Concept
outperforms	O
early	O
encoders	O
like	O
L3enc	B-Application
and	O
possibly	O
the	O
"	O
gold	O
standard	O
encoder	B-General_Concept
"	O
MP3enc	O
,	O
both	O
marketed	O
by	O
Fraunhofer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
LAME	B-Algorithm
was	O
required	O
by	O
some	O
programs	O
released	O
as	O
free	B-Application
software	I-Application
in	O
which	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
was	O
linked	O
for	O
MP3	B-Application
support	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
patent	O
has	O
expired	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
avoided	O
including	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
itself	O
,	O
which	O
use	O
patented	O
techniques	O
,	O
and	O
so	O
required	O
patent	O
licenses	O
in	O
some	O
countries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
LAME	B-Algorithm
is	O
now	O
bundled	O
with	O
Audacity	B-Language
,	O
which	O
previously	O
required	O
a	O
separate	O
download	O
for	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
name	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
is	O
a	O
recursive	O
acronym	O
for	O
"	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
Ai	O
n't	O
an	O
MP3	B-Application
Encoder	I-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Around	O
mid-1998	O
,	O
Mike	O
Cheng	O
created	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
1.0	O
as	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
modifications	O
against	O
the	O
"	O
8Hz-MP3	O
"	O
encoder	B-General_Concept
source	O
code	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
That	O
branch	O
(	O
a	O
patch	O
against	O
the	O
reference	O
sources	O
)	O
became	O
Lame	B-Algorithm
2.0	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mike	O
Cheng	O
eventually	O
left	O
leadership	O
and	O
started	O
working	O
on	O
tooLAME	B-Algorithm
(	O
an	O
MP2	O
encoder	B-General_Concept
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
few	O
key	O
improvements	O
since	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.x	O
,	O
in	O
chronological	O
order	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
May	O
1999	O
(	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.0	O
)	O
:	O
a	O
new	O
psychoacoustic	O
model	O
(	O
GPSYCHO	O
)	O
is	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
June	O
1999	O
(	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.11	O
)	O
:	O
The	O
first	O
variable	B-General_Concept
bitrate	I-General_Concept
(	O
VBR	O
)	O
implementation	O
is	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soon	O
after	O
this	O
,	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
also	O
became	O
able	O
to	O
target	O
lower	O
sampling	O
frequencies	O
from	O
MPEG-2	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.99	O
also	O
supports	O
the	O
technologically	O
simpler	O
average	B-General_Concept
bitrate	I-General_Concept
(	O
ABR	O
)	O
,	O
but	O
it	O
is	O
unclear	O
whether	O
it	O
was	O
added	O
before	O
or	O
with	O
VBR	O
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
November	O
1999	O
(	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.52	O
)	O
:	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
switches	O
from	O
a	O
GPL	B-License
license	I-License
to	O
an	O
LGPL	B-Application
license	I-Application
,	O
which	O
allows	O
using	O
it	O
with	O
closed-source	O
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
May	O
2000	O
(	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.81	O
)	O
:	O
the	O
last	O
pieces	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
ISO	O
demonstration	O
code	O
are	O
removed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
LAME	B-Algorithm
is	O
not	O
a	O
patch	O
anymore	O
,	O
but	O
a	O
full	O
encoder	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
December	O
2003	O
(	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.94	O
)	O
:	O
substantial	O
improvement	O
to	O
default	O
settings	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
improved	O
speed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
LAME	B-Algorithm
no	O
longer	O
requires	O
users	O
to	O
enter	O
complicated	O
parameters	O
to	O
produce	O
good	O
results	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
May	O
2007	O
(	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
3.98	O
)	O
:	O
default	O
variable	B-General_Concept
bitrate	I-General_Concept
encoding	I-General_Concept
speed	O
is	O
vastly	O
improved	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
all	O
MP3	B-Application
encoders	I-Application
,	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
implemented	O
techniques	O
covered	O
by	O
patents	O
owned	O
by	O
the	O
Fraunhofer	O
Society	O
and	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
developers	O
of	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
did	O
not	O
license	O
the	O
technology	O
described	O
by	O
these	O
patents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Distributing	O
compiled	O
binaries	O
of	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
,	O
its	O
libraries	O
,	O
or	O
programs	O
that	O
derive	O
from	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
in	O
countries	O
where	O
those	O
patents	O
have	O
been	O
granted	O
may	O
have	O
constituted	O
infringement	O
,	O
but	O
since	O
23	O
April	O
2017	O
,	O
all	O
of	O
these	O
patents	O
have	O
expired	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
developers	O
stated	O
that	O
,	O
since	O
their	O
code	O
was	O
only	O
released	O
in	O
source	O
code	O
form	O
,	O
it	O
should	O
only	O
be	O
considered	O
as	O
an	O
educational	O
description	O
of	O
an	O
MP3	B-Application
encoder	I-Application
,	O
and	O
thus	O
did	O
not	O
infringe	O
any	O
patent	O
in	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
also	O
advised	O
users	O
to	O
obtain	O
relevant	O
patent	O
licenses	O
before	O
including	O
a	O
compiled	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
encoder	B-General_Concept
in	O
a	O
product	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
software	O
was	O
released	O
using	O
this	O
strategy	O
:	O
companies	O
used	O
the	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
library	O
,	O
but	O
obtained	O
patent	O
licenses	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
course	O
of	O
the	O
2005	O
Sony	O
BMG	O
copy	O
protection	O
rootkit	O
scandal	O
,	O
there	O
were	O
reports	O
that	O
the	O
Extended	B-Application
Copy	I-Application
Protection	I-Application
rootkit	O
included	O
on	O
some	O
Sony	O
Compact	O
Discs	O
had	O
portions	O
of	O
the	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
library	O
without	O
complying	O
with	O
the	O
terms	O
of	O
the	O
LGPL	B-Application
.	O
</s>
