This presentation is devoted to the architecture of streaming services, special features of adaptive streaming, benefits and disadvantages of various streaming technologies and specific issues of media streaming apps development. This presentation by Nazariy Mamrokha, GlobalLogic expert, was delivered at GlobalLogic Lviv C++ TechTalk on September 15, 2016. Learn more here: https://www.globallogic.com/ua/gl_news/globallogic-lviv-c-techtalk-summary/

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Approaches to Building Media Streaming
Applications
Nazariy Mamrokha
15/09/2016

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Confidential
1. Introduction
2. Main components of a streaming app
3. Approaches to building streaming apps
Agenda

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1. Introduction

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Confidential
Wikipedia: Streaming media is multimedia that is
constantly received by and presented to an end-user
while being delivered by a provider.
What is streaming?

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• Netfix states that 42.5 billion hours of video
was streamed in 2015.
• In 2014, 'only' 29 billion hours were streamed
Why should we care?

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• SVOD:
- Netflix
- HBO Now
- Showtime
- Vudu
• AVOD
- Hulu
- Crackle
• TVOD
- iTunes
- Amazon Instant Video
Most popular OTT streaming services

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• Apple TV (2015)
• Roku 4
• Amazon Fire TV
• Google Chromecast
• Xbox
• Playstation
• Nvidia Shield Android TV
CNET Best media streamers 2016

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2. Main components of a streaming app

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Highlevel architecture of streaming service

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• Content discovery and presentation
• Content playback
• Language and captions selections
• Ads
• Authentication and Payments
• Analytics
Main components of a streaming app

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• Free browsing
• Smooth and Fast UX
• Video in 1-2 clicks
• Content categorization:
featured, most popular,
genres, filtering, search
• Internationalization
Content presentation
• Content Posters
• Title and description
• Bookmarking
• Quality/rating badges
• More info (authors)
• Recommendations
• User Entitlements
• Various schemes:
OAuth/OAuth2.0, Adobe
Pass, Akamai TVE
• Billing and purchases
Discovery Details Authorization Ads and Analytics
• Ad delivery formats:
VAST2.0/3.0, SmartXML,
server stitched
• Pre/mid/post rolls,
interactive
• Ad capping and Resume
playback
• Page and video tracking
(GA/Omniture/DW/Conviva
/Comscore)

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• Adaptive to bandwidth
- SD >2 Mbit/s (480p)
- HD >5 Mbit/s (720p, 1080i, 1080p)
- UHD >9 Mbit/s (4K, 8K)
• User Controls:
- Pause/Resume/Exit
- FF/RW (1x,2x,4x,8x)
- Seek, Instant replay
- For audio: next/prev, shuffle/repeat
- Progress bar
• Closed Captions (SMPTE-TT/EIA-608 /WebVTT/SRT)
• Audio track selection
• Pre-buffering
Content Playback

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3. Approaches to building
streaming apps

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Wikipedia: Adaptive streaming is a process that
adjusts the quality of a video being delivered based
on changing network conditions to ensure the best
possible viewer experience.
What is Adaptive streaming?

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• Http Based:
- Adobe HTTP Dynamic Streaming
- Apple HTTP Live Streaming
- MPEG-DASH
- Microsoft Media Server
• Transport protocols
- RTSP
- RTP
Adaptive Streaming Protocols

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Confidential
Comparison of HTTP streaming technologies
Feature Adobe HDS Apple HLS Microsoft
Smooth
MPEG–DASH
Deployment on Ordinary HTTP Servers
Official International Standard (e.g., ISO/IEC
MPEG)
Multiple Audio Channels (e.g., Languages,
Comments, etc.)
Flexible Content Protection with Common
Encryption (DRM)
Closed Captions / Subtitles
Efficent Ad Insertion
Fast Channel Switching

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#EXTM3U
#EXT-X-STREAM-INF:PROGRAM-ID=1,BANDWIDTH=232370,CODECS="mp4a.40.2,
avc1.4d4015"gear1/prog_index.m3u8#EXT-X-STREAM-INF:PROGRAM-
ID=1,BANDWIDTH=649879,CODECS="mp4a.40.2, avc1.4d401e"gear2/prog_index.m3u8
#EXT-X-STREAM-INF:PROGRAM-ID=1,BANDWIDTH=991714,CODECS="mp4a.40.2,
avc1.4d401e"gear3/prog_index.m3u8
#EXT-X-STREAM-INF:PROGRAM-ID=1,BANDWIDTH=1927833,CODECS="mp4a.40.2,
avc1.4d401f"gear4/prog_index.m3u8
#EXT-X-STREAM-INF:PROGRAM-ID=1,BANDWIDTH=41457,CODECS="mp4a.40.2"gear0/prog_index.m3u8
HLS Sample

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• GStreamer – cross-platform multimedia framework. Supports HTTP/RTSP/MMS
• DirectsShow – windows based framework to perform operations with media files or
streams.
• libVLC – cross-platform, GPL, core engine and the interface to the multimedia
framework. VLC is build upon in.
• LIVE555 Streaming Media - RTP/RTCP/RTSP/SIP multimedia streaming
• FFMPEG – cross-platform universal framework for media processing
C++ SDKS for streaming

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Pipeline Based Architecture

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• Qt based – cross platform, LGPL. Complete and consistent framework.
• GIMP Toolkit – cross platform, LGPL. GUI toolkit only.
• HTML5/JS based – rendering using Qt Port of WebKit. Platform dependant.
• Platform based, using capabilities of streaming platform.
Approaches to building UX/UI

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Thank you!
Q/A?