Do you know what is MPEG4 file extension? A file with an extension MPEG4 is a standard video file format that is a compression standard that makes use of standard MPEG4 video layer compression codec. It is developed by Apple Corporation and the videos can be played in any multimedia player like QuickTime Player. MPEG4 is usually used in portable video players such as iPod, Zune, and PSP. MPEG4 has the capacity to contain several multimedia elements and combine them into one playable file.    

MPEG4 standard is being used extensively in three popular technologies due to its compression techniques; one is mobile phone technology, in which compressed version of mobile phone videos are stored, second is DVDs which are digital video discs which uses MPEG4 to enhance the video quality of a DVD, third is for computer videos. MPEG4 is not only compatible with Apple devices but also with non-Apple devices.  

Before you want to know that how to play MPEG4 files, you must know what plays MPEG4 files?

There are number of media players available that can play MPEG4 files such as Apple's QuickTime Player, PSP, VLC Media Player, Microsoft Windows Media Player, etc.

If you simply wanted to open an MPEG4 file on your computer, you will have to forcibly convert MPEG4 file to a recognizable file format.

Now comes the question, how to play MPEG4 files?

It is easy. There are many media players that supports MPEG4 file format. You can play these files using VLC Media Player that is an open source software. VLC Media Player will allow you to open MPEG4 files directly.

Following are few steps that describes how to play M4A files using VLC Media Player:

• Go to website of VLC Media Player and download appropriate VLC Media Player's setup file according to your operating system.
• Double-click on VLC Media Player setup file. It will self-extract the content and install VLC Media Player. Follow the instructions.
• Drag and drop the MPEG4 files into your VLC Media Player.
• Play the video using the Play button on toolbar.

Earlier versions of Windows Media Player do not support MPEG4 file format. But, the newer versions like Windows Media Player 11 and onwards support MPEG4 video files. You can play these files using Windows Media Player 11.

Following are few steps that describes how to play MPEG4 files using Windows Media Player 11:

• Go to Microsoft website and download latest version of Windows Media Player.
• Double-click on the setup file. The installation process will begin.
• Follow the on-screen prompts and instructions and complete Window's Media Player installation.
• Open Windows Media Player and click on file menu.
• Click Open. Locate and Select the file you want to play. 
• Click on the MPEG4 file you want to play.
• If it does not allow you to open the file successfully and a message box appears, click on the option to download the appropriate codec to open the file. Proceed to play MPEG4 file after the download is complete.   

After reading this article, how to play MPEG4 files is no more a problem for you!