Multicast distribution and control for streaming multimedia

Modern industrial networks are increasingly using multimedia to support online broadcast of training videos, educational material, and recorded company announcements. When the material is to be viewed by groups of people, unicast distribution increases network load proportionally to the number of viewers, while multicast distribution creates constant network load but eliminates an individual's ability to control the stream. We introduce a hybrid platform for multimedia distribution whose network and server load is independent of the number of viewers, yet retains individual stream control. We have built a proof-of-concept system based upon commercial PC technology that supports the simultaneous distribution of multiple copies of multiple multimedia rules. We show how web programming using JavaScript, ActiveX controls, ASP, and HTML can be incorporated with commercial, off-the-shelf media servers and media players to create an Internet multimedia server with constant network and server load characteristics.