Video Adaptation for Transmission Channels by Utility Modeling

The satisfaction a user gets from watching a video in a resource limited device, can be formulated by utility theory. The resulting video adaptation is optimal in the sense that the adapted video maximizes the user satisfaction, which is modeled through subjective tests comprising of 3 independent utility components : crispness, motion smoothness and content visibility. These components are maximized in terms of coding parameters by obtaining a Pareto optimal set. In this manuscript, inclusion of transmission channel capacity into the subjective utility model of user satisfaction is addressed. It is proposed that using the maximum channel capacity as a restriction metric, certain members of the Pareto optimal solution set can be eliminated such that the remaining members are suitable for transmission through the given channel. Once the reduced solution set is obtained, an additional figure of merit can be used to pick a single solution from this set, depending on the application scenario