Our research paper titled "Swipe, Watch, Switch: Assessing the QoE Effects of Quality Switches in Short-Form Videos," co-authored by our chair in collaboration with researchers from the University of Würzburg, has been accepted to the 18th International Conference on Quality of Multimedia Experience (QoMEX 2026), which will take place from June 29 to July 3, 2026, in Cardiff, Wales.

The paper investigates the perceptual impact of adaptive quality switching in short-form video (SFV) services such as Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts. We examined how quality changes and their temporal placement within or between videos affect user perception in swipe-based viewing environments. Using a realistic mobile framework, we conducted a crowdsourced Quality of Experience (QoE) study, revealing the following findings:

- 144p is rated significantly lower than higher resolutions (240p, 360p, 480p, and 720p)
- Quality switches involving 144p tend to degrade perceived quality, whereas switches among higher resolutions have limited impact
- Switch placement influences perception, with within-video switches yielding slightly higher ratings than between-video switches

Paper: Filip Simonovski, Theo Zahn, Nikolas Wehner, Michael Seufert. "Swipe, Watch, Switch: Assessing the QoE Effects of Quality Switches in Short-Form Videos." 18th International Conference on Quality of Multimedia Experience (QoMEX 2026), June 29-July 3, 2026, Cardiff, Wales.

Link to the paper: Available after the conference