Abstract: A video transcoding method and apparatus enables digital video to be transmitted over various network infrastructures by transcoding video data to fit available bandwidth. A transcoder extracts MPEG video data from the video stream wrapper and decomposes the MPEG layered data to the block level. The transcoder then processes the variable length coding (VLC) of discrete cosine transform (DCT) coefficients without having to decode and re-code the video stream. Processing involves assigning an allowable error range to each DCT frequency in the video stream based on the available network bandwidth and/or the effect of the DCT code on perception of picture quality, and adapting video traffic dynamically by changing large length codes to small length codes based on the assigned allowable error range. The larger the allowable error ranges that are assigned to the DCT frequencies, the more video traffic may be trimmed off from the incoming video stream.