Patent ID: 8200067

Claim:
A system for enabling a user to edit a video program comprising a sequence of images, the system comprising: storage for storing compressed motion video data wherein a compressed bitstream includes, for each image of the sequence of images, compressed data grouped according to image data bandwidth and wherein the groups of compressed image data are ordered in a bitstream according to a progression of image data bandwidth that increases monotonically from lower bandwidth image data to higher bandwidth image data as defined by a specified one of a plurality of dimensions; a processor for copying a portion of the compressed bitstream corresponding to lower bandwidth image data as defined by the specified dimension into a file for storing lower bandwidth compressed video data; and a video editor having an interface for permitting a user to specify one or more clips wherein each clip references a range of video data in the file for storing lower bandwidth compressed video data and in the stored compressed motion video data, and for playing back the one or more clips using one of the file for storing lower bandwidth compressed video data or the stored compressed motion video data.