A new resource allocation scheme is proposed for video service over a Gaussian channel. For video quality rating, we introduce a suitable metric: the average peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) or the average channel-induced PSNR degradation. Then, we model the end-to-end distortion considering the error propagation effect caused by motion compensation. On the basis of this model, we propose an efficient resource allocation scheme for real video service. Unlike conventional schemes, the new scheme satisfies the PSNR requirement of each video user by adjusting the bit-error rate level with the changes of image characteristics. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme utilizes the bandwidth more efficiently than conventional schemes.Index Terms-Bit-error rate, distortion, H.263, peak signal-tonoise ratio, resource allocation, variable bit rate, wireless video.