Infinera Solutions

Video Quality and the Internet

Video content accounts for some 10-20% of Internet traffic today, according to studies. Most of this video is in low quality form, produced or copied on amateur equipment and then compressed by hosting websites. Video compression introduces sacrifices in image quality in terms of resolution, color and the ability to display motion. By comparison, broadcast television is moving up the quality curve, with more and more high-definition channels available via cable and satellite, and more popular programs worldwide shot and broadcast in HDTV.

As more consumers spend more time watching video on the Internet, they will demand higher quality video. Even with better quality video compression, that will lead inexorably to larger file sizes. The infrastructure must be able to support this growing demand. Infinera believes Bandwidth Virtualization, based on large-scale photonic integration, will play a key role in meeting this challenge.

To illustrate the dramatic difference between today's consumer-generated videos and the video quality the Internet must support if it is to compete effectively with broadcast television, Infinera has produced Bandwidth Virtualization, An Architecture for Today's Internet, and posted it to the Internet in multiple forms. The most widely viewed form of this 9-minute video will be Version 1 below, with a file size of 26.94 megabytes and a streaming rate of 300 kilobits/second (kbps). The original HDTV version of the video measured 7.1 gigabytes, about 270 times larger than Version 1. A "raw" or uncompressed version of the video would measure 23.99 gigabytes, or 890 times the size of the video-sharing version.

While video compression techniques are driving better image quality at smaller file sizes, the creative television and filmmaking community does not stand still either. The television industry is moving from standard definition TV (486 vertical lines in the US) to 720 and then 1080, and the digital film industry at professional level is moving beyond 1080, actively experimenting with 2k and 4k formats. Larger and larger screens will enable viewers to enjoy these larger formats. All this video adds up to a significant challenge to the network.

Version 1: Video-Sharing Websites

Infinera's 9-minute video is compressed to 27 megabytes, with a streaming rate of 300 kbps. Video-sharing websites are optimized for ubiquitous use. Even dial-up users can view these videos. View Version 1 by clicking on any of these links:

Version 2: Standard-Definition Television

This version is compressed with MPEG-2, the compression codec used for most DVDs. The dimensions are 853x480, the file size is 77 MB, streaming at a rate of about 800 kbps.

Version 3: Compressed HDTV

This version is compressed with two advanced compression formats. The DivX version has a frame size of 720x400, file size of 93 MB, and streaming rate of 966 kbps. DivX is an impressive technology and strikes an interesting tradeoff between bandwidth demand, image quality, and user-friendliness. The Flash Video format (used in the version on the Infinera website), is sized at 1248x702, with a file of 143 MB and a streaming rate of 2 Mbps. Warning: this format may strain many users' computers and networks!

Version 4: HDTV

The video in its 7.1 gigabyte form is not practicable to view over a standard Internet connection today. Click on the links to view a single frame excerpted from the video.

Thanks for technical support: Olivier Lauchenauer/Pogo Films Ltd. and BoldFocus.