JBIG-KIT implements a highly effective data compression algorithm for
bi-level high-resolution images such as fax pages or scanned
documents.

JBIG-KIT provides a portable library of compression and decompression
functions with a documented interface that you can very easily include
into your image or document processing software. In addition, JBIG-KIT
provides ready-to-use compression and decompression programs with a
simple command line interface (similar to the converters found in Jef
Poskanzer's PBM graphics file conversion package).

JBIG-KIT implements the specification

  International Standard ISO/IEC 11544:1993 and ITU-T Recommendation
  T.82(1993), "Information technology - Coded representation of picture
  and audio information - progressive bi-level image compression",
  <http://www.itu.ch/itudoc/itu-t/rec/t/t82_23822.html>,

which is commonly referred to as the "JBIG standard". JBIG (Joint
Bi-level Image experts Group) is the committee which developed this
international standard for the lossless compression of images using
arithmetic coding. Like the well-known compression algorithms JPEG and
MPEG, also JBIG has been developed and published by the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU) (see also <http://www.iso.ch/> and
<http://www.itu.ch/>).