Apparatus and method for correcting jitter in data packets

An arrangement (apparatus and method) for detecting jitter caused during transport of digitally-coded information, such as MPEG-encoded data packets, and for correcting time stamp reference values in accordance with the detected jitter. The disclosed arrangement detects program clock reference (PCR) values from an MPEG-encoded transport stream, whereby each pair of PCR values represents an expected interarrival time of a corresponding stream segment. An actual interarrival time for the corresponding stream segment is determined in response to detection of the corresponding PCR values and an independent clock signal. The expected interarrival time of the stream segment is compared with the actual interarrival time in order to determine the jitter in the data packet stream. The jitter is corrected by a combination of adaptive buffering techniques and restamping the PCR value with corrected values coinciding with the actual interarrival time of the stream segments. The disclosed arrangement may be implemented in a receiver system, or as part of the network node that minimizes the effects of cell delay variation in an ATM network.