Unequal error protection for embedded codes over parallel packet erasure channels

This paper presents extensions to previous algorithms for unequal error protection (UEP) of multimedia encoded using embedded source coders. Whereas earlier work on this topic has considered the single-channel case only, we investigate the case where multiple parallel channels with possibly different loss characteristics are used. Such scenarios are becoming more relevant with the gradual deployment of priority-enabled networks (e.g. DiffServ). We present results indicating that significant performance gains can be achieved by using UEP instead of the simpler EEP (Equal Error Protection) scheme also in the multichannel case. Furthermore, it is seen that the performance gap between UEP and EEP increases with an increasing number of channels.