compress

>>> import bz2
>>> data = b"""\
... Donec rhoncus quis sapien sit amet molestie. Fusce scelerisque vel augue
... nec ullamcorper. Nam rutrum pretium placerat. Aliquam vel tristique lorem,
... sit amet cursus ante. In interdum laoreet mi, sit amet ultrices purus
... pulvinar a. Nam gravida euismod magna, non varius justo tincidunt feugiat.
... Aliquam pharetra lacus non risus vehicula rutrum. Maecenas aliquam leo
... felis. Pellentesque semper nunc sit amet nibh ullamcorper, ac elementum
... dolor luctus. Curabitur lacinia mi ornare consectetur vestibulum."""
>>> c = bz2.compress(data)
>>> len(data) / len(c)  # Data compression ratio
1.513595166163142
>>> d = bz2.decompress(c)
>>> data == d  # Check equality to original object after round-trip
True