A three dimensional video decoder apparatus comprising: circuitry configured to extract from a bitstream representing 3D video a set of encoded video blocks, comprising an encoded video block of each of a texture component of a first view of multiple views of multi-view video, a depth component of the first view, a texture component of a second view of the multiple views, and a depth component of the second view; circuitry to extract from said bitstream a flag associated with a first video block of the set of encoded video blocks, the flag to indicate whether the first video block is encoded based on inherited prediction parameters associated with a second video block of the set of video blocks; circuitry to selectively extract from said bitstream information from which the second block from which the prediction parameters were inherited is determinable and prediction parameters associated with said second video block in response to an indication that the first video block is encoded based on inherited prediction parameters, wherein the inherited prediction parameters include inter-prediction modes if the second video block includes coding blocks encoded based on the inter-prediction modes; wherein the selectively accessed prediction parameters comprise at least a motion vector and a reference index if the second video block includes coding blocks encoded based on the inter-prediction modes; and circuitry to decode the first video block based on the inherited prediction parameters, characterized in that the inherited prediction parameters include intra-prediction modes if the second video block includes coding blocks encoded based on the intra-prediction modes, and the inherited prediction parameters include a combination of inter and intra prediction modes if the second video block includes both coding blocks encoded based on the inter modes and coding blocks based on the intra-modes. circuitry configured to extract from a bitstream representing 3D video a set of encoded video blocks, comprising an encoded video block of each of a texture component of a first view of multiple views of multi-view video, a depth component of the first view, a texture component of a second view of the multiple views, and a depth component of the second view; circuitry to extract from said bitstream a flag associated with a first video block of the set of encoded video blocks, the flag to indicate whether the first video block is encoded based on inherited prediction parameters associated with a second video block of the set of video blocks; circuitry to selectively extract from said bitstream information from which the second block from which the prediction parameters were inherited is determinable and prediction parameters associated with said second video block in response to an indication that the first video block is encoded based on inherited prediction parameters, wherein the inherited prediction parameters include inter-prediction modes if the second video block includes coding blocks encoded based on the inter-prediction modes; wherein the selectively accessed prediction parameters comprise at least a motion vector and a reference index if the second video block includes coding blocks encoded based on the inter-prediction modes; and circuitry to decode the first video block based on the inherited prediction parameters, characterized in that the inherited prediction parameters include intra-prediction modes if the second video block includes coding blocks encoded based on the intra-prediction modes, and the inherited prediction parameters include a combination of inter and intra prediction modes if the second video block includes both coding blocks encoded based on the inter modes and coding blocks based on the intra-modes.