Hybrid Unicast-Broadcast Video Delivery for Scalable Low-Latency Live Streaming

Abstract

The demand for high-quality, low-latency video streaming is placing strain on conventional internet infrastructures. This article proposes a hybrid unicast–broadcast video delivery framework designed to address this challenge by integrating advanced 5G broadcast technologies with traditional unicast methods. By offloading popular content to a broadcast network, the approach aims to alleviate congestion and enhance overall streaming efficiency. To ensure reliable video segment delivery over the broadcast network, regardless of the physical layer, we incorporate Packet Recovery (PR) and Forward Error Correction (FEC) mechanisms. Additionally, Temporal Layer Injection (TLI) is employed to further improve video quality while maintaining reduced bandwidth requirements compared to traditional unicast-only approaches. This innovative framework leverages 5G terrestrial broadcasting within Over-the-Top (OTT) streaming environments, enabling seamless delivery of adaptive video content with sub-1-second live latency. Comprehensive experimentation and evaluation through large-scale emulation demonstrate the efficacy of this hybrid approach in meeting the evolving demands of modern multimedia delivery systems. Notably, when broadcasting the top three most commonly watched video streams, 63% of viewers no longer need to request video segments via unicast, as they are efficiently delivered over broadcast channels. This hybrid model offers significant scalability, cost reduction for an ISP, and efficiently delivers content directly to user devices without additional intermediaries, improving viewer experience through low-latency, high-quality streaming.