Content-Aware Intra-Refresh for Video Streaming over Lossy Links

Insertion of intra-coded macroblocks (MBs) is a means of mitigating temporal error propagation in mobile video streaming using an H.264/AVC codec. This paper proposes that the insertion of a cyclic line of such intra-coded MBs can give considerable quality gain for less-active video sequences rather than the more common periodic insertion of intra-coded frames, which in its turn is shown to be favorable for more-active sequences. The paper finds that randomized insertion of intra-refresh MBs is always less suitable than a cyclic line of intra-coded MBs. The results are relevant to choice of content when streaming to/between smartphones.