Portable Network Graphics (PNG) is a raster graphics file format that supports lossless data compression. Developed as an improved, non-patented replacement for GIF, PNG is widely used on the internet and is well-suited for editing images. PNG supports palette-based images (with palettes of 24-bit RGB or 32-bit RGBA colors), grayscale images, and full-color non-palette-based RGB or RGBA images. PNG files generally have better compression than GIF files without losing any image quality. PNG also supports transparency through an alpha channel, allowing for smooth blending of images with backgrounds. It's particularly useful for storing images with sharp lines and text, such as logos, illustrations, and diagrams. Unlike JPEG, PNG is not designed for photographic images, as JPEG's lossy compression is generally more efficient for those types of images. PNG is an open format, meaning its specifications are publicly available and free to use, which has contributed to its widespread adoption.