Auriga Provides Solutions for Streaming Content

Recently, there has been an upsurge in interest in streaming content. One of the reasons is the increased popularity of smartphones and tablets that allow using interactive services on the fly (i.e., while on the road, traveling, visiting friends, etc.).

[pullquote]

According to the Cisco Visual Networking Index, VNI, global mobile data traffic will increase 13-fold between 2012 and 2017, with approximately half of that traffic accounted for by streaming content.

The report from Juniper Research has found that by 2017, 2 billion mobile and tablet users will watch TV and video on their devices, not to mention those streaming content accessed via desktops and laptops. Leading global companies—including Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Yandex, Netflix, Last.fm, and Spotify—create and develop their own services that provide users with access to large databases of media files for streaming. Many services offer cross-platform integration that adds to their user-friendliness.

[/pullquote]

To utilize this trend to their own benefit, companies need solutions and platforms designed to optimize mobile-video traffic and support the growing video-streaming volume on all types of mobile-carrier networks. Moreover, these mobile-video solutions must support all popular mobile platforms and be easily integrated with existing legacy backend services such as content-management systems, database-management systems, and cloud-computing services.

Auriga has gained significant hands-on experience that makes it possible for us to tackle almost any task in the field of streaming content. We have developed strong expertise in this field and learned a few tricks of the trade.

Within the last year, Auriga completed a few significant projects in this area:

  • Development of the SAAS video-service solution for the broadcasting of webinars, web videoconferences, etc. Within the frame of the project, Auriga’s engineers participated in the development of server and client ends of the application. As a result, a GWT-based web interface has been developed. Additionally, a research study has been launched aimed at identifying the optimal server for streaming multimedia content that conforms to the requirements of the client. With direct involvement of Auriga experts, a transcoding server with support of H.263 and H.264 standards has been developed. The server transcodes the streams and provides frame rate, bitrate, and codec parameters adaptation, minimizing the latency caused by transcoding route.

The application has been included in the cloud services package of one of the largest Russian telecom operators.

  • Development of a Skype-like application for Mac OS for a large telecom company. The solution allows calls from computer to computer as well as from computer to landline and mobile cell phones. It also includes additional functionalities, such as video calls, video conferences, and some standard functions of the telephone exchange, such as call holding and forwarding.
  • For one of the leading smartphone vendors, our company implemented a unique service that transcodes video stored in the cloud from its original quality to the quality that matches the capabilities of the receiving device and channel. The service allows users to store a single media file and convert it to the right quality on the fly instead of storing several file copies of different quality for different types of receivers.

However, the tasks of video signal processing in real time are not limited to video streaming only. Recently, our engineers completed a project focused on using data received from video cameras and building real 3D models based on that data. The solution for 3D construction progress visualization and monitoring allows the building of 3D structures from stereo vision. To improve the quality of incoming images, a Super Resolution algorithm is used, which contributes to the high effective resolution and camera-noise reduction. For an accurate estimate of the object state, several stereo pairs are used to cap