A dynamic quality of service framework for video in broadband networks

A dynamic framework for QoS control of video in distributed multimedia appl ications is presented. The framework allows flexible and efficient video de livery with application-level QoS support. Key components of the framework are client QoS renegotiation, server source rate control, and dynamic bandw idth allocation. The coordinated functionality of these distributed compone nts provides soft QoS to adaptive applications. A proof-of-concept prototyp e of a video browser with user-level control of soft QoS is implemented wit hin the proposed framework. The implementation uses a distributed software architecture that represents soft QoS requirements by software objects call ed service contracts. These objects are exchanged among servers, network no des, and clients to achieve distributed soft QoS control. Experiences with the prototype and its performance are discussed.