Patent ID: 7289720

Claim:
A magnetic tape playback apparatus for playing back, with a rotary head, a magnetic tape on which first group data comprising compressed high-definition or standard-definition video data, audio data or search data, or comprising auxiliary data having a variable length and related to the video data, the audio data or the search data, and second group data containing a subcode related to said first group data are recorded such that said first group data and said second group data are continuously arranged on tracks without being spaced away from each other, and wherein said auxiliary data is recorded together for each unit comprising a predetermined number of pictures, said apparatus comprising: acquiring means for acquiring the auxiliary data, as said first group data, from data reproduced from said magnetic tape with said rotary head; and decompressing means for decompressing the compressed high-definition video data, which is contained in the data reproduced from said magnetic tape with said rotary head, by using the auxiliary data acquired by said acquiring means, wherein a type of auxiliary data used for shortening pre-playback time is recorded in a main area at a head of an interleaving unit.