Telecommunication and multimedia management method and apparatus

A communication application embedded in a non-transitory computer readable medium and intended to run on a sending node connected to a network, the application comprising:

• a media module configured to ascertain at the sending node if media to be transmitted over the network to a receiving node is either time-sensitive or not time-sensitive, the time-sensitivity of the media based on if a recipient is to render the media immediately upon receipt;
• a transmission module configured to transmit the non time-sensitive media from the sending node to the receiving node and to adjust the rate of transmission of the non time-sensitive media at the sending node based on network conditions;
• and
• a retransmission receipt-request module configured to receive at the sending node from the receiving node one or more first low priority requests for the retransmission of any missing non time-sensitive media lost during the transmission;
• the transmission module further configured to transmit the time-sensitive media from the sending node to the receiving node;
• the retransmission receipt-request module further configured to receive at the sending node from the receiving node one or more second low priority requests for the retransmission of any missing time-sensitive media lost during transmission when a predetermined network transmission loss threshold is not exceeded such that the quality of the received time-sensitive media is decipherable upon receipt;
• the transmission module further configured to retransmit the missing time-sensitive media and the non time-sensitive media in response to the first and second low priority requests when bandwidth on the network becomes available in excess of what is needed for the transmission of time-sensitive media.

A sending node connected to a network, the sending node comprising:

• a central processing unit and a memory;
• a media element configured to ascertain at the sending node if media to be transmitted over the network to a receiving node is either time-sensitive or not time-sensitive, the time-sensitivity of the media based on if a recipient is to render the media immediately upon receipt;
• a transmission element configured to transmit the non time-sensitive media from the sending node to the receiving node and to adjust the rate of transmission of the non time-sensitive media at the sending node based on network conditions;
• and
• a retransmission receipt-request element configured to receive at the sending node from the receiving node one or more first low priority requests for the retransmission of any missing non time-sensitive media lost during the transmission;
• the transmission element further configured to transmit the time-sensitive media from the sending node to the receiving node;
• the retransmission receipt-request element further configured to receive at the sending node from the receiving node one or more second low priority requests for the retransmission of any missing time-sensitive media lost during transmission when a predetermined network transmission loss threshold is not exceeded such that the quality of the received time-sensitive media is decipherable upon receipt;
• the transmission element further configured to retransmit the missing time-sensitive media and the non time-sensitive media in response to the first and second low priority requests when bandwidth on the network becomes available in excess of what is needed for the transmission of time-sensitive media.