Utility-based resource allocation for real-time IPTV in wireless networks

Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) is a key growth application for Internet traffic. The combination of real-time services such as video and voice along with best effort Internet access introduces challenging Quality of Service (QoS) issues. In order to meet the QoS requirements, smart resource allocation is required, in particular for IPTV provision across wireless networks. In existing research, IPTV is generally described as a video application. This supports the high bandwidth characteristic of IPTV but not the low latency requirement of realtime transmission. In this work, we present a real-time IPTV utility function describing the application with respect to the stage of transmission. This accurately represents IPTV with high bandwidth, low latency characteristics. The function describes the relationship between allocated channel time and the user perceived quality of the transmission. In an example wireless networking scenario, the resource allocation solution illustrates accurate prioritization in accordance with the individual user requirements.