A method of decoding a compression-coded video signal that has been packetized and transmitted over a packet-based network in a sequence of packets that are associated with at least one frame of the compression-coded video signal, the method comprising the steps of: receiving packets associated with the at least one frame of the compression-coded video signal, the received packets containing low priority partition information bytes and forward error/erasure correction -coded high priority partition data bytes associated with the at least one frame of the compression-coded video signal, the compression-coded video signal having been split into low priority and high priority partitions before being packetized and transmitted, and the received FEC-coded high priority partition data bytes comprising a combination of the high priority partition information bytes associated with the at least one frame and associated parity bytes; determining which transmitted packets associated with the at least one frame of the video sequence have not been received; applying a FEC decoding only to the FEC-coded high priority partition data bytes in the received packets to determine high priority partition information bytes associated with the at least one frame, wherein the step of applying a FEC decoding includes reconstructing high priority partition information bytes in those packets determined not to have been received; combining the received low priority partition information bytes and the decoded and reconstructed high priority partition information bytes; and decompression-decoding the combined received low priority partition information bytes and the decoded and reconstructed high priority partition information bytes to reproduce the at least one frame of the video signal, wherein each received packet has an equal length and each packet contains both high priority partition data bytes and low priority partition information bytes, the high priority partition data bytes in each received packet comprising either all high priority partition information bytes associated with the at least one frame or all parity bytes. receiving packets associated with the at least one frame of the compression-coded video signal, the received packets containing low priority partition information bytes and forward error/erasure correction -coded high priority partition data bytes associated with the at least one frame of the compression-coded video signal, the compression-coded video signal having been split into low priority and high priority partitions before being packetized and transmitted, and the received FEC-coded high priority partition data bytes comprising a combination of the high priority partition information bytes associated with the at least one frame and associated parity bytes; determining which transmitted packets associated with the at least one frame of the video sequence have not been received; applying a FEC decoding only to the FEC-coded high priority partition data bytes in the received packets to determine high priority partition information bytes associated with the at least one frame, wherein the step of applying a FEC decoding includes reconstructing high priority partition information bytes in those packets determined not to have been received; combining the received low priority partition information bytes and the decoded and reconstructed high priority partition information bytes; and decompression-decoding the combined received low priority partition information bytes and the decoded and reconstructed high priority partition information bytes to reproduce the at least one frame of the video signal, decompression-decoding the combined received low priority partition information bytes and the decoded and reconstructed high priority partition information bytes to reproduce the at least one frame of the video signal, wherein each received packet has an equal length and each packet contains both high priority partition data bytes and low priority partition information bytes, the high priority partition data bytes in each received packet comprising either all high priority partition information bytes associated with the at least one frame or all parity bytes.