diff --git a/README b/README
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0ec14d9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+This is a set of cross-platform command line tools for working with MPEG data.
+
+The emphasis is on relatively simple tools which concentrate on MPEG (H.264 and
+H.262) data packaged according to H.222 (i.e., TS or PS), with a particular
+interest in checking for conformance.
+
+Transport Stream (TS) is typically used for distribution of cable and satellite
+data. Program Stream (PS) is typically used to store data on DVDs.
+
+The tools are focused on:
+
+* Quick reporting of useful data (tsinfo, stream_type)
+* Giving a quick overview of the entities in the stream (esdots, psdots)
+* Reporting on TS packets (tsreport) or ES units/frames/fields (esreport)
+* Simple manipulation of stream data (es2ts, esfilter, esreverse, esmerge, ts2es)
+* Streaming of data, possibly with introduced errors (tsplay)