Annotation based multimedia streaming over wireless networks

The relatively high power consumption of wireless network interfaces represents an important detriment in multimedia streaming for mobile devices. The IEEE 802.11 built-in power saving mode was designed for transfers of different nature and is not able to take advantage of the short idle intervals and continuous, periodic transmissions inherent in multimedia streaming. We propose an annotation based approach to wireless network power management that analyzes the variations in data transfer bandwidth during playback and uses the results to buffer data into larger burst transmissions with longer idle periods when the network card is transitioned into a lower power, sleep mode. Annotations allow for energy savings of up to 75% for the network interface, with practically no quality degradation or packet loss, only a small delay due to the buffer.