Transmitting MPEG-4 Video Streams over the Internet : Problems and Solutions

In this work we discuss the transmission of MPEG-4 video streams over lossy packet networks like the Internet. Due to the efficient compression achieved by the MPEG-4 standard, parts of the bitstream show high inter-dependencies. Consequently, without any precautions packet loss within the transmission of a video session severely affects the video quality. Based on the error resilience tools already provided by the MPEG-4 video coding standard, we define an RTP payload format for MPEG-4 video streams and appropriate fragmentation rules. Furthermore, we present experimental results to evaluate the overall robustness of the approach