An application-level protocol that integrates the concept of application level framing and the network-aware applications is proposed in this paper to support the network applications with the synchronized multimedia session. The application model and the application QoS for the protocol are also proposed. The application QoS for each flow includes the maximum allowable ratio for the lost medium unit and the delay bound of the medium unit associated with the maximum allowable late ratio. The control mechanisms that support the application protocol include error control, real-time control for individual flow within the session, and synchronization control for the multimedia session. Moreover, the application protocol with the control mechanisms provides a quantitative expression for the quality of the synchronized session in terms of the QoS parameters. Measurement results show the effectiveness of the protocol.

Keywords: application-level protocol, synchronized multimedia session, QoS supporting, application level framing, network-awareness

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Received October 14, 2006; revised April 16 & August 23, 2007; accepted December 5, 2007.
Communicated by Homer H. Chen.