VIDEO ENCODER AND DECODER FOR AN IMPROVED ZAPPING SERVICE FOR MOBILE VIDEO RECEPTION

摘要

The present invention relates to an improved zapping service for broadcasting digital video data to mobile receiving terminals, and in particular to a video encoder and a video decoder therefore. The zapping service contains still pictures (intra-coded frames) that are synchronized with a corresponding P-frame of a main video service. The respective synchronization data is generated by the video encoder and transmitted to the mobile receiving terminal. The video decoder of the mobile receiving terminal is capable of employing the synchronization data to use a zapping service I-frame as a Random Access Point for decoding an encoded main service image sequence. Accordingly, waiting time until the main video service is ready for display after selection of a main new video service (zapping) is reduced, and a smaller number of bandwidth consuming I-frames have to be transmitted in the main service channel. Thereby the bandwidth requirements are reduced.