Systems and methods for video content analysis

A communications device comprising:

• a video sensor configured to capture video frames representative a sequence of images;
• a video encoder configured to:
• encode the video frames using macroblock-based video encoding to provide encoded versions of the video frames, and
• generate video analytics metadata (VAMD) for each of a plurality of macroblocks processed while encoding each video frame;
• and
• a communication interface adapted to transmit the VAMD to a video decoder configured to generate video analytics information related to the video frames based on the VAMD and the encoded version of the video frames.

An apparatus comprising:

• a camera;
• a video encoder configured to provide encoded versions of video frames representative of images received from the camera, wherein the video encoder is further configured to generate video analytics metadata (VAMD) for each video frame;
• and
• a communication interface adapted to transmit the VAMD over a network to a video decoder configured to generate video analytics information related to the video frames based on the VAMD and the encoded versions of the video frames.