Multi-connection TFRC Video Streaming in a Concatenated Network: Latency and Video Quality

Abstract

Sending a single video stream over multiple TCP-Friendly Rate Control (TFRC) connections is a promising lightweight way of coping with wireless channel losses and traffic congestion in a concatenated network (one consisting of a broadband wireless link and a wired all-IP network). Multi-connections introduce the need for data re-ordering at the receiver. This paper considers the potential delay at an uplink destination on the Internet. It also considers the impact on video quality of packet drops due both to channel loss and router buffer overflow, when the TFRC congestion controller is applied. Results for an IEEE 802.16e (mobile WiMAX) link show a worthwhile gain in video quality from using three or more connections over a single connection but with start-up delay n the multi-connection case due to the need to avoid possible buffer underflow. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010.