Video QoS enhancement using perceptual quality metrics

Abstract

As the market for broadband video services matures, the ability to deliver high-value video content will become increasingly important. For the telecommunications industry to compete effectively with other video providers, it is vital that the quality of video services matches the expectations of customers. A major challenge lies in ensuring that the trade-off between price and quality is acceptable to consumers of broadband video. This paper introduces a new method for measuring in real-time the perceptual quality of video. The potential operational benefits of this method are discussed. The paper describes how a no reference video quality measurement method may be deployed as a mechanism for quality control at the point of video encoding and transmission. Further, it is proposed that a real-time video quality metric can be used to measure the quality received on end users' devices. By applying perceptual quality measurements for quality control and feedback, this mechanism can be used to ensure adequate quality is delivered to customers, make more efficient use of bandwidth and thereby reduce backhaul costs, and act as a quality assurance check on the customer's end device.