An interactive telelecture system with hybrid ATM/IP networking

Currently, there is much debate whether ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) or IP (Internet Protocol) is the better internetworking technology for multip arty multimedia applications. Proponents of ATM argue that only a connectio n-oriented network can satisfy the stringent timeliness requirements of hig h-quality audio and video data. Proponents of the Internet emphasize the sc alability and flexibility of connectionless networking. In this paper a mul tiparty multimedia telelecture system, called Distance Learning Controller (DLC), is presented that uses both ATM and IP, thus, attempting to exploit the advantages of both technologies, without suffering the drawbacks of eit her technology. The DLC system uses ATM for transmission of broadcast-quali ty video and CD-quality audio, and IP-over-ATM for low-bandwidth applicatio ns and conference control functions. This paper describes the hardware and software components of the DLC system.