Although multimedia compression formats and protocols to stream such content have been around for a long time, there has been limited success in the adoption of open standards for streaming over IP (Internet Protocol) networks. The elements of such an end-to-end system will be introduced outlining the responsibilities of each element. The technical and financial challenges in building a viable multimedia streaming end-to-end system will be analyzed in detail in this paper outlining some solutions and areas for further research. Also, recent migration to IP in the backend video delivery network infrastructures have made it possible to use IP based media streaming solutions in non-IP last mile access networks like cable and wireless networks in addition to the DSL networks. The advantages of using IP streaming solutions in such networks will be outlined. However, there is a different set of challenges posed by such applications. The real time constraints are acute in each element of the media delivery end-to-end system. Meeting these real time constraints in general purpose non real time server systems is quite demanding. Quality of service, resource management, session management, fail-over, reliability, and cost are some important but challenging requirements in such systems. These will also be analyzed with suggested solutions. Content protection and rights management requirements are also very challenging for open standards based multimedia delivery systems. Interoperability unfortunately interferes with security in most of the current day systems. Some approaches to solve the interoperability problems will also be presented. The requirements, challenges, and possible solutions for delivering broadcast, on demand, and interactive video delivery applications for IP based media streaming systems will be analyzed in detail.
KEYWORDS: Java, Video, Multimedia, Standards development, Computer programming, Information security, Computer security, Video coding, Semantic video, Control systems
The Java based application engine defined in the Systems part (Part 1) of the
MPEG-4 standard is called MPEG-J. MPEG-J, which stands for MPEG-Java, is
designed to be used with the parametric, scene description based, presentation
engine defined by the same standard. It facilitates programmatic control as
opposed to the parametric control provided by the presentation engine by
defining a set of Java APIs to access and control the underlying MPEG-4
terminal. An MPEG-J application (MPEGlet) which uses these APIs can be used
in the content as an MPEG-J elementary stream similar to audio and video
streams. A delivery mechanism is defined in MPEG-J to carry the Java byte code
and Java objects that makes an MPEG-J application. Complex algorithmic control
can be embedded in such an application to include behavior based on time-varying
terminal conditions. The lifecycle and scope of an MPEG-J application is
defined in the standard along with a strict security model. Content creation in
MPEG-J involves a paradigm shift as it blurs the boundaries between media
content and computer programs. As the
MPEG-J application can leverage the power of Java, the application scenarios are
limited only by the ingenuity of the content creator.
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