UIMA-AS binary serialization

Hi UIMA users--

I see in the README for 2.3 that UIMA-AS uses a new, efficient binary  
serialization for remote services.

I couldn't find much information about it in the Async Scaleout docs.  It  
was briefly mentioned as a configuration option, but not described.

Is this the same format that is used to serialize to C++?

If not, where can I find more information?

Must the recipient re-constitute the CAS, or is it self-describing like  
XML and could be handled by a non-UIMA recipient?

Thanks,

Greg Holmberg