Patent ID: 8270469
Filing Date: 2012-09-18
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. A method of encoding or re-encoding video, comprising: receiving video data comprising a sequence of frames; for a respective frame in the sequence of frames, generating a multi-level frame comprising the respective frame and a plurality of copies of the respective frame, each copy having an associated video resolution level, the video resolution level of each copy being a member of a predefined range of video resolution levels that range from a highest video resolution level to a lowest video resolution level; and encoding the multi-level frame, the encoded multi-level frame comprising a plurality of separately encoded copies of the respective frame, each copy configured for decoding independently of the other encoded copies of the respective frame in the encoded multi-level frame; wherein encoding the multi-level frame comprises, for each copy in the plurality of copies, partitioning the copy into tiles, and encoding the tiles, wherein each of the tiles is encoded as a plurality of macro-blocks, wherein at least one of the macro-blocks of a respective tile is dual encoded as both an intra-coded bitstream, without predictive coding, and an inter-coded bitstream, with predictive coding; and after the encoding, storing the encoded multi-level frame, including the dual-encoded macro-block, and after the encoding and storing, responding to a request from a client system by; selecting, in accordance with a display window of the client system, one of the intra-coded bitstream and inter-coded bitstream of the dual-encoded macro-block, and transmitting to the client system the selected bitstream of the multi-level frame without transmitting the other bitstream of the dual-encoded macro-block.