The encoding and distribution of schema for multimedia content descriptions are described. Before the schema is sent to a system for use, it is encoded by assigning a first token for each component in the schema and a second token for each attribute of each component. In one aspect, a signifier is sent first to signal that the schema is to be sent in a particular format. In one aspect, the schema is sent as a whole entity first. In another aspect, some of the components of the schema are sent first, followed by the schema that refers to these components. In another aspect, the schema is sent first, followed by a set of component types. When the decoder receives the signifier and encoded schema, it looks up values for the first and second tokens in a look up table for all components and attributes to decode the schema.