Video Integration in Multimedia Applications and the Use of Various Delivery Channels

Multimedia applications, until now, are more or less based on stand-alone computer systems. In conjunction with the use of different delivery channels these systems are getting more and more distributed. The extended use of the Internet as well as the introduction of digital video delivery offer the opportunity to establish new services. Especially in this changing context current definitions of the term multimedia are no longer valid and additional aspects have to be considered when analyzing multimdia systems. Against this background I will present a generl description of the different aspects of multimedia systems. Moreover, I will point out the user-centered approach which should be inherent to these systems, as wll as technological issues resulting from this approach. High Definition Multimedia or the "CIIQ"-principle is one approach, which is described in more detail in this paper, which follows this comprehensive view on multimedia and the user-centered approach. It considers th e major aspects completeness, interaction, integration, and quality in the development and use of multimedia systems. Based on this description the aspects quality, integration, and interactivity of multimedia systems will be discussed in more detail in conjunction with the use and integration of video data. I will show that video scaling and the use of compressed data are important tactors determining the quality of video streams in distributed multimedia applications. Furthermore, the aspect integration leads to the discussion of the use and combination of various delivery channels. Conventional television, World Wid Web (WWW), Interactive Television are keywords which are of relevance today and the question arises in which way combinations of these services and their used delivery channels can be reached. Using dynamically assembled delivery channels offer enhanced interactivity mechanisms, hence new approaches are discussed which lead to extended user interactivity and new applica t ions. At the end of this paper the discussions are summarized and relevant issues concerning multimedia authoring, standardization, and regulation will be discussed