Data compression method and system that use a regressive string reference, pointing to and delimiting an encoded pointee string, and identify the reference through a signalling element, an encoding device and a decoding device arranged for implementing the method, and a storage medium provided with information produced by such encoding device and/or arranged for decoding by such decoding device

A compression system being arranged for executing compression of a data stream through inserting means for systematically implementing the inserting of regressive pointer-length reference strings along such stream, each such reference indicating the replacing of a particular data string through referring to an associated earlier data string of identical content as said particular data string,

• said system being characterized in that:
• said inserting means are arranged for inserting said regressive reference string as referring to an encoded object, through pointing to a pointee object, identifying said regressive reference string through a respectively associated value of a signalling element, as well as identifying unreplaced data through a respectively associated further value of a signalling element, and referencing means for providing a back-reference scheme for straightforwardly backreferencing to such reference strings.