Patent ID: 7433406

Claim:
A computer readable medium for storing a computer program which, when executed by a processor, provides a data structure for representing a plurality of image frame sequences, where each image frame sequence comprises image frames having common image frame portions and respective image frame portions, each of said plurality of image frame sequences having associated with it a respective stream, wherein each stream comprises groups of pictures (GOP) having a first picture and at least one remaining picture, the data structure comprising: a first set of at least one element for representing data for the first pictures in the plurality of GOPs, wherein each of at least one element in the first set represents data for at least a portion of the first picture of a respective GOP encoded as an I-picture, and wherein each of remaining elements in the first set represents data for at least a portion of the first picture of a respective remaining GOP encoded as at least one of a B-picture and a P-picture; and a second set of one or more elements for representing data for the one or more remaining pictures in the plurality of GOPs, wherein each element in the second set represents data for at least a portion of a particular remaining picture in one of the plurality of GOPs encoded as at least one of a B-picture and a P-picture, and wherein each of the plurality of streams is represented by one or more elements in the first set and one or more elements in the second set.