Patent ID: 8300556

Claim:
A system for optimizing bandwidth during a video conference comprising: a plurality of multipoint conference units (MCUs) each operable to facilitate video conferences between two or more participants, the MCUs further operable to facilitate cascaded video conferences comprising participants managed by two or more of the MCUs; a plurality of endpoints participating in a video conference, each endpoint operable to establish a conference link with a selected one of the MCUs, to generate a plurality of video streams and a corresponding plurality of audio streams, to transmit the generated video streams and the generated audio streams on the conference link, to receive a plurality of video streams and a plurality of audio streams, to present the received audio streams using a plurality of speakers, and to display the received video streams using a plurality of monitors; a controlled MCU of the MCUs managing a first set of the endpoints, the controlled MCU operable: to receive a first set of available video streams comprising the generated video streams from each of the first set of endpoints; to select N potential video streams out of the first set of available video streams, wherein N equals the maximum number of active video streams that any endpoint is able to display concurrently; and to transmit the potential video streams to a master MCU of the MCUs; and the master MCU managing a second set of the endpoints, the master MCU operable: to receive a second set of available video streams comprising the generated video streams from each of the second set of endpoints and the potential video streams from the controlled MCU; to select active video streams out of the second set of available video streams, the active video streams comprising N primary video streams and M alternate video streams; to determine required ones of the active video streams for delivery to one or more of the first set of the endpoints; and to transmit the required ones of the active video streams to the controlled MCU.