Low delay streaming of DASH content with WebRTC data channel

Abstract

Instantaneous low delay on-demand video streaming with a very low start up and channel switching delay is highly desirable for users. The dominant over-the-top (OTT) solutions like DASH, which is based on HTTP and/or WebSocket, suffer from a slow start of the underlying TCP transport while the typical coding structure of the DASH content introduces additional delays. In this work, we address these issues with a new low delay transport based on a WebRTC data channel along with a new content side packetization scheme based on a new QoE metric driven DASH sub-representation to facilitate a fast start, with an agile and fine granular rate adaptation. Simulations on both NS-3 and the GENI testbed demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach. This can serve as a basis for a further peer assisted low delay over-the-top (OTT) solution for an instantaneous live video streaming solution.