THE INTERACTIVE MULTIMEDIA JUKEBOX (IMJ) - A NEW PARADIGM FOR THE ON-DEMAND DELIVERY OF AUDIO VIDEO/

Straightforward, one-way delivery of video programming through televis ion sets has existed for many decades. In the 1980s, new services like Pay-Per-View and Video-on-Demand were touted as the ''killer applicat ion'' for next-generation Internet and TV services. However, the hype has quickly died away leaving only hard technical problems and costly systems. As an alternative, and what we propose, is a new paradigm off ering flexibility in how programs are requested and scheduled for play out, ranging from complete viewer control (true VoD), to complete serv ice provider control (traditional broadcast or cable TV). In this pape r, we describe our proposed jukebox paradigm and relate it to other on -demand paradigms. Our new paradigm presents some challenges of its ow n, including how to best schedule viewer requests, how to provide VCR- style interactive functions, and how to track viewer usage patterns. I n addition to addressing these issues we also present our implementati on of a jukebox-based service called the Interactive Multimedia Jukebo x (IMJ). The IMJ provides scheduling via the World Wide Web (WWW) and content delivery via the Multicast Backbone (MBone). We discuss the ch allenges of building a functioning system and our ongoing efforts to i mprove the jukebox paradigm. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science B. V. All rights reserved.