INTERNET VIDEO

Contents:
Key attributes of internet video
Internet video Applications
System architecture
Delivery platform and services
Presented by
Rekha Nair
Asst.Prof
Kvvs IT
Adoor
1
INTERNET VIDEO
Internet video is a relatively new phenomenon in the world of video delivery.
o YouTube is by far the most viewed site on the Internet for video content.
KEY ATTRIBUTES OF INTERNET VIDEO
Most viewers have much lower expectations for Internet video:
o seconds of blank screens before a video starts to play,
o low resolutions on many websites,
o issues with video and audio synchronization,
o ther technical drawbacks.
!i"ure #$%# shows a very simplified view of an Internet video network.
This dia"ram is broken into two sections, labeled production and distribution.
In production, the video content is captured from a source, di"itized, edited, labeled, and
bundled into a file that is placed on a server where it can be accessed.
In distribution, a person uses an Internet%connected &' to search for content, connect to
the server, ac(uire ri"hts to view the content, and then either download a video file or
re(uest a video stream of the content for viewin" on their &' usin" specialized
multimedia viewin" software.
2
!irst, the user must identify where the content is located on the Internet.
!or example, a user mi"ht have received an e%mail from a friend with a link to a website
containin" the video.
)hen the user clicks on the link, the browser on the &' connects to the appropriate web
server.
Typically, the web server then displays a screen that "ives some information about the
video.
The user then may be asked to click on a link embedded in that pa"e, which be"ins the
video playin" process.
ne important step that happens at this time is an exchan"e of information between the
server and the browser software on the &' that tells the browser to run a plu"%in application
called a media player.
Then, as the video file is delivered, the user can watch the content
Discrete Content Elements
Instead of continuous channels of hi"hly produced pro"rammin", most Internet video
content is available in the form of clips for viewers to watch at a convenient time.
Many of the video files available for viewin" or downloadin" are relatively short, five
minutes or less.
'ertainly, lon"er%duration files are available, but they tend to be available on advertiser%
supported or viewer%paid sites.
*ot all Internet video involves discrete content elements+ some real%time streamin"
broadcasts are available.
!or example, *,-, T. offers some live video content each day from the International
-pace -tation as well as live covera"e of ma/or events such as shuttle launches and space
walks.
illions o! Content O!!erin"s
,ny (uick search of some of the more popular video websites will show that there are
literally millions of different video files available for viewin", with thousands more bein"
added each day.
3
0ocatin" a specific piece of content for viewin" can be a challen"e with Internet video.
Many viewers find content by followin" links on web pa"es or in e%mails that direct them to
video content sites.
#lti$le Content Form%ts
, wide variety of formats can be used for video files, and virtually all of them have
found their way onto the Internet.
There are many choices, includin" various camera formats 1such as 2.3, M&45 family
1#, 6, or 73, 8&45 1basic or 69993, player%specific formats
1)indows Media, :uickTime, ;eal *etworks, etc.3, and a variety of
'omputer file formats 1such as ,.I3.
!or content providers, this variety can present a dilemma.
If the provider chooses to support only a sin"le video format, then any viewer who
wishes to watch the content must already have the appropriate player software installed or
finds a way to "et the proper &layer.
n the other hand, the provider chooses to support multiple formats, and then they
assume the burden of producin" and mana"in" multiple versions of their content.
In addition to the choice of video compression technolo"y, content providers must
decide on the screen resolutions they will support.
0ow resolutions offer small file sizes that are easier to download over low%bandwidth
network connections but also create small ima"es for viewin".
<i"her resolutions offer increased picture (uality but can re(uire a lon" time to
download or a hi"h%bandwidth connection for live streamin".
Deli&ered O&er t'e P#blic Internet
ne bi" stren"th of Internet video is that it can be delivered to any viewer with a
connection to the Internet.
f course, hi"h%bandwidth connections are easier to use and deliver (uicker results, but
even consumers with low%speed dial%up connections can download video files if they are
patient enou"h.
4
=se of the public Internet also means that content providers don>t need to build network
facilities to their viewers, resultin" in a si"nificant cost savin"s.
=nfortunately, this means that the network must be shared with a host of other
applications that consume bandwidth.
,lso, there is no means for video content to be "iven hi"her priority than other types of
traffic, which can dramatically increase the difficulty of deliverin" hi"h%(uality, hi"h%
bandwidth content in real time to viewers, as is commonly done on I&T. systems.
Vie(ed on Cons#mer PCs
, reasonably powerful consumer desktop or laptop &' is capable of runnin" the player
software re(uired to decompress and display most compressed video formats.
.iewers will watch the content on the display screen of the &' itself+ in other cases, the
video will be displayed on a television set connected to a video output port of the &'.
ther consumer video playback devices have be"un to enter the market for Internet
video content.
ne of the most popular portable video viewers is the ,pple .ideo i&od, which features
a screen resolution of ?69 @ 679 pixels.
INTERNET VIDEO APP)ICATIONS
Internet video has some uni(ue applications for Internet video

#3 *arrowcastin"
In narrowcastin", I& video si"nals are sent over an established data network to reach an
audience for pro"rammin" that mi"ht not appeal to a lar"e audience.
!or example, for the past five years the &5, Tour has broadcast live Internet video
covera"e of every player on a sin"le hole durin" the first two days of a "olf tournament
1the island #Ath "reen of the Tournament &layers 'lub at -aw "rass course used for The
&layer>s 'hampionship tournament, for those who must know3.
,lso available are ma/or lea"ue baseball "ames, television feeds from a number of
different countries, and a "reat deal of prerecorded content.
, surprisin" amount of content is available by narrowcast+ consumers need only "o to
the homepa"es of any of the ma/or media player companies to see a smatterin" of what
is available.
*arrowcast video streams are normally displayed only on a user>s &', but the same
si"nal can be processed for display on a normal television as well, usin" a &' e(uipped
with a video output card or a stand%alone adapter.
5
*arrowcastin" content is provided free of char"e 1supported by advertisin"3.
63 Movie &reviews
.ideo over the Internet really "ot a /ump start in the late #BB9s with the availability of
<ollywood movie previews on websites.
*o lon"er constrained to showin" their wares on expensive television commercials or as
Ccomin" attractionsD in theaters, movie studios be"an to reach out to the online community.
,t first, much of this content was set up for download and play, because very few home
users had access to broadband connections suitable for hi"h%(uality streamin".
ne of the classics was the -tar )ars 4pisode # trailer at a 1then3 hefty #9.7 me"abytes+
it was released in March #BBB and downloaded ?.$ million times in its first five days of
availability, accordin" to a press release at the time.
Many of the downloads would have taken upwards of half an hour for people who, like
the author at the time, had dial%up service.
Ey the end of 699A, over F9 percent of the active Internet users in the =nited -tates
employed a broadband service
?3 Internet ;adio and T.
, number of free and subscription services have appeared on the Internet to provide
both audio and video content.
There are literally thousands of Internet radio stations, due in part to the relatively low
cost of e(uipment and the low bandwidth re(uired.
Internet television stations are much less common, but they are becomin" more feasible
as the number of users with broadband connections increases.
.ideo% and audio%streamin" sites have been developed for a number of purposes,
includin" corporate brandin" 1free sites3, advertisin" supported 1also free3, and subscription
1monthly or other periodic payment system3.
, hu"e variety of content is available, includin" newscasts, music, adult pro"rammin",
and entertainment.
It is not a content%on%demand service, where each user can watch any content he or she
chooses in any order.
Much of this content is prerecorded, so download%and%play technolo"y is perfectly
ade(uate.
6
<owever, this can be somewhat disruptive to the flow of the broadcast, because each file
must be downloaded before play can be"in.
&ro"ressive download "reatly alleviates this problem, because playback of each new file
of content can be"in as soon as the first se"ment of it is downloaded to the &'.
73 0ive 'ontent
!or live content, particularly for any type of interactive Internet video, true streamin" is
the only practical choice.
)hen this is implemented, the video si"nal "oes directly from the source into a real%
time video encoder, and then output is immediately wrapped in I&
&ackets and transmitted out to the network.
,t the viewer>s location, the client device receives the incomin" stream, decodes
it in real time and delivers the si"nal directly to the viewin" device.
)ebcams, which are now embedded in many laptops, are popular sources for live
content, particularly in two%way connections.
-imilar in functionality to video conferences, almost any Internet video architecture can
be used to support webcams, includin" &6& networks such as -kype, which has built%in
support for several types of video camera.
,nother popular application for live Internet video is live viewin" of traffic and weather
conditions at various locations around a metropolis.
These are typically confi"ured to support a number of simultaneous viewers, possibly
throu"h the use of a content%delivery network numbers of viewers are to be supported
simultaneously.
*+ Pl%ce s'i!tin"
Many readers may be familiar with the concept of time shiftin", where viewers record
off%air video pro"rams for playback at a more convenient time, usually by means of a &.;.
&lace shiftin" is a related concept where the viewer is in a location outside the home but
still able to watch video pro"rammin" available at home.
This is accomplished throu"h the use of a small Internet streamin" server located at the
home that is connected to the viewer>s normal video e(uipment.
The user can remotely control this server by means of their &' that is also used to
display the content.
7
In addition, the user can control the home video e(uipment by way of software controls
on the &' that are converted into infrared remote commands in the home installation.
-lin" Media is a pioneer in this market space. ne of the bi" benefits of this technolo"y
is enablin" users to watch subscription T. pro"rammin" that they have available in their
home but not in their current location.
2own sides.
This technolo"y re(uires use of the valuable return path bandwidth from the home to the
viewer>s I-&, which typically has limited bandwidth.
In addition, any devices such as ',T. or 2T< -TEs that are bein" used and controlled
by the remote viewer are not available for viewers in the home to use, unless they are
watchin" the same pro"rammin".
SYSTE ARC,ITECTURE
, server loaded with content is able to deliver files to client devices upon re(uest.
These client devices take the incomin" media content files and decode them usin" a
software application for presentation to the user via a connected display.
,n Internet video server has a fixed public I& address that is made visible to the )orld
)ide )eb and is accessible to any connected user.
8
'ontent%delivery networks 1'2*s3 can be used to assist in the delivery of files.
Many video delivery services today use pro"ressive download and &lay for one bi" reason:
the ability to transit firewalls.
The key to smooth playback of the video si"nal is to ensure that each video file is delivered
before it is needed.
To make this easier, many players establish a buffer with enou"h stora"e to hold, say, #$ or
?9 seconds> worth of video before playback be"ins.
Then, durin" playback, the player continues to download more content files In se(uence,
normally tryin" to maintain a constant buffer of content that is ready to play.
Many video delivery services today use pro"ressive download and play for one bi" reason:
the ability to transit firewalls.
Many firewalls block all or most ;T&G=2& packets to prevent ro"ue users from insertin"
packets containin" viruses or other malicious code into le"itimate content streams.
The files used in pro"ressive 2H& applications are essentially identical to any other file that
can be delivered by <TT&, and in fact these files can be served by any standard web server
software 1such as ,pache3.
The key to smooth playback of the video si"nal is to ensure that each video file is
delivered before it is needed.
To make this easier, many players establish a buffer with enou"h stora"e to hold, say, #$
or ?9 seconds> worth of video before playback be"ins.
Then, durin" playback, the player continues to download more content files in se(uence,
normally tryin" to maintain a constant buffer of content that is ready to play.
In the event that delays occur in the download, the buffer may shrink+ but as lon" as it
doesn>t become empty, video playback will continue smoothly.
If the buffer does become empty, then the video display will typically freeze until more
content can be downloaded and the buffer becomes at least partially filled.
This happens noticeably more often on <2 content than on -2 content because of the
lar"er amounts of data that must be streamed for <2.
!or those delivery services that do not use pro"ressive 2H&, videostreamin" is another
popular choice for distributin" video content.
9
This technolo"y is re(uired for live events and can also be used for applications that
need extremely fast start%up or lar"e amounts of user playback control.
ne bi" advanta"e of true streamin" is that a video file is never stored on the user>s
deviceIit simply occupies some memory for bufferin" durin" play out.
DE)IVERY P)ATFORS AND SERVICES
, number of delivery platforms are available for use in Internet video applications.
They can be broken down into three rou"h cate"ories:
!ree services, free services with in%stream advertisements, and user%paid services.
!ree services are ones that a viewer does not need to pay for but may include advertisin"
that is not part of the actual video stream.
In%stream advertisement services are ones that use video advertisin" inserted into the
content, either before, durin", or after the video the user actually wants to watch.
&aid services are ones that the user pays for, either on a per%item basis or on a subscription
basis.
Ty$es o! Ad&ertisin"
!i"ure #$%? shows the types of ads as they would appear in a media player
display.
10
)ebsite or banner ads , which may be text or "raphics that appear ad/acent to the video
display window.
These may be static or animated and may or may not bear any relation to the content
bein" played.
Typically these ads include a hotlink that will cause another browser window to open up
if the viewer clicks on them.
,nimated overlays are "raphics that appear in the video window while the user>s
selected video is playin", but they do not interrupt the flow of the main window or the
audio track.
In many implementations, overlays appear a short while after the video has started
playin", last #9 seconds or so, and then disappear if the user does not click on them.
In most implementations, the overlays occupy only a portion of the video and may or
may not be translucent to show the video behind.
If the user does click on the overlay, then either another browser window can be opened
or the current video can pause to allow the advertiser>s content to be displayed.
In%stream advertisin" consists of video content that completely replaces the viewer>s
selected content for a short duration.
This user experience is exactly the same as with traditional television advertisin", where
the flow of the pro"ram is interrupted and replaced with completely different audio and
video.
11