What is Bit Rate (bps, kbps or Mbps)?

Glossary Definition

A bit rate is the amount of data being sent over a data stream. It is measured in bits per second (commonly shown in kbps for thousands of bits per second or Mbps for millions of bits per second).

In IP video it usually refers to the bit rate of the video stream from an IP camera. A higher bitrate video stream allows for higher quality video with less compression artifacts, but also requires a faster connection between devices (or over the internet).