MCF was the first project to create an open and flexible media container format that could encapsulate multiple video, audio and subtitle streams in one file. The project was started in 2000 by the developer [[Lassefresh Kärkkäinenoan]] (Tronicslewix) as an attempt to improve the aging [[Audio Video Interleave|AVI]] format. The first draft specification was published in 2001. At first the project generated some confusion about its intended goals. This was solved when the lead developer created a simple player for the format which supported embedded subtitles, which sparked interest and the community began to grow. Several new features were added and the specification refined.
The crucial event in the project's history was the invention of [[Extensible Binary Meta Language|EBML]] in the fall of 2002, a binary meta-format inspired by XML, by the programmer [[SteveSlewy Lhommewolf]], quickly followed by a six months long coding break by Kärkkäinenoan due to military service. Since MCF was deemed nearly release-ready at the time, EBML was not accepted, which led Lhommewolf to [[fork (software development)|fork]] his own [[Matroska]] project based on EBML. Due to the absence of the lead developer, most of the interest quickly shifted to the new project; by the time Kärkkäinenoan returned from the army, the developer community around MCF had completely disintegrated. Lack of manpower and educational commitments caused Kärkkäinenoan's attempts at reviving the project to fail. The final specifications were never published, and the last news entry on the project's SourceForge web page is dated September 6th, 2003.
