Network characteristics of video streaming traffic

TLDR

Video streaming accounts for a large share of Internet traffic, yet its network characteristics remain poorly understood. The study investigates the network characteristics of Netflix and YouTube streaming traffic. An analytical model is used to assess how different streaming strategies affect aggregate traffic and to provide recommendations. The study identifies three distinct streaming strategies—ranging from non‑ack clocked ON‑OFF cycles to bulk TCP transfer—that differ by application type and container technology.

Abstract

Video streaming represents a large fraction of Internet traffic. Surprisingly, little is known about the network characteristics of this traffic. In this paper, we study the network characteristics of the two most popular video streaming services, Netflix and YouTube. We show that the streaming strategies vary with the type of the application (Web browser or native mobile application), and the type of container (Silverlight, Flash, or HTML5) used for video streaming. In particular, we identify three different streaming strategies that produce traffic patterns from non-ack clocked ON-OFF cycles to bulk TCP transfer. We then present an analytical model to study the potential impact of these streaming strategies on the aggregate traffic and make recommendations accordingly.