File with an .AVI extension is a set – a container for multimedia video and audio data, created by Microsoft in the year 1992, on the basis of the RIFF format (Resource Interchange File Format). This format is universal and supported by the most of available multimedia players.

Audio and Video data stored in the AVI format is usually compressed less than in other similar formats, they may be using a different type of codecs, such as DivX and XviD. In order to play them in a system, proper codecs must be installed.