Screen　content　image　(SCI)　has　recently　emerged　as　an　active　topic　due　to　the　rapidly　increasing　demand　in　many　graphically　rich　services　such　as　wireless　displays　and　virtual　desktops.　SCIs　are　often　composed　of　pictorial　regions　and　computer　generated　textual/graphical　content,　which　exhibit　different　statistical　properties　that　often　lead　to　different　viewer　behaviors.　Inspired　by　this,　we　propose　an　objective　quality　assessment　approach　for　SCIs　that　incorporates　both　visual　field　adaptation　and　information　content　weighting　into　structural　similarity　based　local　quality　assessment.　Furthermore,　we　develop　a　perceptual　screen　content　coding　scheme　based　on　the　newly　proposed　quality　assessment　measure,　targeting　at　further　improving　the　SCI　compression　performance.　Experimental　results　show　that　the　proposed　quality　assessment　method　not　only　better　predicts　the　perceptual　quality　of　SCIs,　but　also　demonstrates　great　potentials　in　the　design　of　perceptually　optimal　SCI　compression　schemes.　©　1981-2012　IEEE.