Video streaming at mobile edge

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11128682-B2
Application number	US-201816207260-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 3, 2018
Priority date	Dec 3, 2018
Publication date	Sep 21, 2021
Grant date	Sep 21, 2021

Abstract

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a method comprising sending context information from a mobile wireless device through a control channel to a network server; receiving a policy at the mobile wireless device from the network server, wherein the policy assigns a video streaming bit rate to the mobile wireless device based on the context information; and implementing the policy to control a video streaming session between the mobile wireless device and a media server over a data channel. The context information may include information about the mobile wireless device and/or a user of the mobile wireless device. The policy may be different for each mobile wireless device. Other embodiments are disclosed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system comprising:
a processor operating as a mobile network edge node; and
a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising:
facilitating establishing a first control channel with a first mobile wireless device, the first control channel being a dedicated channel to receive context information including first context information and to transmit policy information including a first policy and policy decisions, wherein the first control channel is not utilized to communicate video content;
obtaining the first context information from the first mobile wireless device through the first control channel;
determining the first policy according to the first context information, wherein the first policy assigns a first video streaming bit rate to the first mobile wireless device based on the first context information;
providing the first policy to the first mobile wireless device over the first control channel, causing the first mobile wireless device to implement the first policy to control a first video streaming session between the first mobile wireless device and a media server over a first data channel that is distinct from the first control channel, wherein the first data channel does not transmit the context information and does not transmit the policy information, and wherein the media server is operated by a content provider and is separate from the mobile network edge node;
receiving second bitrate switching information from a second mobile wireless device engaged in a second video streaming session to the second mobile wireless device from the media server over a second data channel, wherein the first and second mobile wireless devices compete for throughput;
receiving additional context information and first bitrate switching information from the first mobile wireless device through the first control channel, the first bitrate switching information indicating switching from utilizing the first video streaming bit rate by the first mobile wireless device during at least a portion of the first video streaming session; and
revising the first policy based on the first context information, the first bitrate switching information and the second bitrate switching information.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first context information includes information about the first mobile wireless device.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the first context information includes information about a capability of the first mobile wireless device selected from the group consisting of a screen size of the first mobile wireless device, a screen resolution of the first mobile wireless device, a processor of the first mobile wireless device, and a memory capacity of the first mobile wireless device.

4. The system of claim 2 , wherein the first context information includes information about an ambient lighting at the first mobile wireless device.

5. The system of claim 2 , wherein the first context information includes information about a network connection of the first mobile wireless device.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first context information includes information about a first user of the first mobile wireless device.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the first context information includes information about an engagement of the first user with the first mobile wireless device.

8. The system of claim 6 , wherein the first context information includes an indication of whether the first user is looking at the first mobile wireless device.

9. The system of claim 1 , the operations further comprising:
obtaining second context information from the second mobile wireless device through a second control channel;
determining a second policy according to the first context information and the second context information, wherein the second policy assigns a second video streaming bit rate to the second mobile wireless device based on the second context information; and
providing the second policy to the second mobile wireless device over the second control channel, causing the second mobile wireless device to implement the second policy to control the second video streaming session, wherein the first context information is different from the second context information, wherein the first policy is different from the second policy such that the first video streaming bit rate is different than the second video streaming bit rate.

10. A non-transitory machine-readable medium, comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processing system including a processor, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising:
receiving first context information from a first mobile wireless device through a first control channel, the first control channel being a dedicated channel to receive context information including first context information and to transmit policy information including a first policy and policy decisions, wherein the first control channel is not utilized to communicate video content;
determining a first policy according to the first context information, wherein the first policy assigns a first video streaming bit rate for communications between the first mobile wireless device and a media server over a first data channel based on the first context information;
transmitting the first policy to the first mobile wireless device over the first control channel, wherein upon receipt of the first policy the first mobile wireless device implements the first policy;
receiving first bitrate switching information from the first mobile wireless device through the first control channel, the first bitrate switching information indicating switching from utilizing the first video streaming bit rate by the first mobile wireless device during at least a portion of a video streaming session;
receiving second bitrate switching information from a second mobile wireless device engaged in a second video streaming session to the second mobile wireless device from the media server over a second data channel, wherein the first and second mobile wireless devices compete for throughput;
revising the first policy based on the first context information, the first bitrate switching information and the second bitrate switching information; and
providing the first policy to the first mobile wireless device over the first control channel, causing the first mobile wireless device to implement the first policy to control a first video streaming session between the first mobile wireless device and a media server over a first data channel that is distinct from the first control channel, wherein the first data channel does not transmit the context information and does not transmit the policy information, and wherein the media server is operated by a content provider and is separate from a mobile network edge node.

11. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 10 , wherein the first context information includes information about the first mobile wireless device selected from the group consisting of an ambient lighting at the first mobile wireless device, a screen size of the first mobile wireless device, a screen resolution of the first mobile wireless device, a processor of the first mobile wireless device, and a memory capacity of the first mobile wireless device.

12. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 10 , wherein the first context information includes information about a first user of the first mobile wireless device.

13. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 12 , wherein the first context information incl

Assignees

• At & T Ip I Lp
• Old Dominion Univ Res Found

Inventors

• Halepovic Emir
• Mustafa Ibrahim Ben
• Nadeem Tamer

Classifications

• H04L65/61 Primary

  for supporting one-way streaming services, e.g. Internet radio · CPC title

• H04L65/765

  intermediate · CPC title

• H04L65/764

  at the destination  (reformatting of additional data in video clients H04N21/4355) · CPC title

• H04L65/612

  for unicast · CPC title

• H04L65/80 Primary

  Responding to QoS · CPC title