The PNG (Portable Network Graphics) image format, which first appeared in 1995, has received a new version. ProgramMax reports this based on information from the World Wide Web Consortium.

This file format has been recommended by the W3C for internet use since 1996. Its second version was released in 2003, and now the third edition has arrived—its first major update in over two decades. PNG v3 has been officially approved as a W3C standard effective June 24, 2025.

The new standard introduces several important capabilities, including support for HDR-quality images. By employing the compact cICP profile, HDR versions of PNG can be only 16 bytes larger than standard SDR versions. Additionally, PNG 3 supports EXIF data such as camera model information or GPS coordinates, features previously typical for JPEG but unavailable for PNG.

Another significant change is the official inclusion of animated PNG (APNG) support in the standard. While APNGs have existed before, they are now officially recognized, leading to expectations of broader support in software.

The development of PNG's third version has been ongoing since 2021 in collaboration with Adobe, Apple, and Google, and as of now, PNG 3 is supported by Chromium-based browsers, Firefox, macOS, iOS, Adobe Photoshop, and DaVinci Resolve. In the future, W3C aims to optimize lossless compression and improve HDR compatibility on SDR displays and vice versa.