Internet Video Performance

Internet video has become the dominant application on service provider networks today. YouTube, iTunes, BitTorrent, RapidShare, MegaUpload, Facebook, MySpace and a handful of other applications and services are leaders in delivering online video and have become the largest consumer of consumer Internet traffic. In addition, video clips are available on all of the most popular web sites. All of the major studios and independent producers are delivering video streams and downloads on the Internet, making video the fastest growing application on wireless and wireline networks today. 

Superior Video Quality of Experience – QoE

 

Quality of Experience (QoE) is a measurement of a subscriber’s satisfaction with their service provider. Given the popularity of Internet video, satisfaction is being measure by the Internet video experience. To today's Internet subscribers QoE means:

  • Downloading and Watching video files as quickly as possible providing a near instant experience
  • Watching streaming movies, television shows or video clips at the highest possible quality level without interruption due to buffering or other disruptive factors.


As a result, the key QoE metric in determining subscriber satisfaction has become how fast a user can download and watch a video, and the quality of that video. Subscribers now take basic connectivity for granted. It is no longer good enough to provide reliable access to web sites, email, and the company VPN. Users expect that their favorite video services will work, and work well, whether they are based on traditional HTTP technology or rapidly emerging P2P networks. Interference with the performance of these applications can draw national attention and tarnish a service provider’s brand.

The Internet is no longer just a connection; and QoE is no longer measured by whether a connection is working or not. Rapid video downloading, immediate and uninterrupted streaming, and a smooth, rich media experience are the factors that will ultimately differentiate broadband services and their value to consumers. Video QoE will determine which service providers will thrive and which will struggle. Subscribers expect much more from their service providers - especially subscribers who have upgraded to higher speed broadband packages or 3G mobile networks.

The Solution

While the proliferation of video has spawned massive growth in Internet traffic and created enormous challenges for network operators, it has also given them an opportunity to innovate and differentiate themselves. After years of concern over having their data network become a “dumb pipe,” service providers now have a class of application which relies on service quality. Consumers care about the quality of their video and the performance of their network, giving the service provider a real opportunity to differentiate, gain market share, and up sell faster broadband or wireless connections. However, to capitalize on this opportunity the service provider needs a solution that allows them to accelerate content delivery and satisfy consumer demand without incurring massive network costs.

PeerApp’s UltraBand media caching software enables network operators to minimize the impact of video traffic on the network while delivering a premium end-user video experience. PeerApp eliminates redundant HTTP and P2P traffic by caching popular content within the provider network, and improves the end-user experience by delivering content to the subscriber at the fastest possible rate. With PeerApp operators can create premium broadband packages and specialized Internet video offerings to help recoup their capital investments, improve market share, and stay ahead of the competition. PeerApp helps operators improve customer satisfaction and reduce subscriber churn by offering an outstanding video and download experience, plus enhance margins and ARPU through tiered broadband services.

By deploying PeerApp’s UltraBand network operators are vastly improving their subscribers’ video QoE. Download times are decreased and video quality is improved as content is sourced from the edge of the network. Making highly cacheable multimedia content available for fast, uninterrupted delivery to the subscriber will yield enhanced brand, competitive advantage, subscriber growth, lower costs and improved profitability. It also encourages subscribers to upgrade to the highest speed broadband packages, as those users realize the greatest benefit of wire speed delivery. These services usually come with higher price points.

The UBView graphic below – taken from an actual customer network – demonstrates UltraBand savings in action. The chart shows that content delivered to subscribers from the UltraBand cache achieves an average throughput of 915 Kbps, which in this case is very close to the maximum data rate achievable in this (ADSL) access network. Content delivered directly from a (remote) source over the Internet is reaching the subscriber at the paltry rate of 125 Kbps – a data rate that would either render the video unwatchable (stuttering) or require unacceptable delays to the beginning and playing of a video.


The UltraBand gives network operators three important capabilities for optimizing the subscriber QoE:

Caching: Intelligent caching enables the most efficient delivery of bits over the network. The PeerApp solution caches popular video and other multimedia content, eliminating repetitive downloading of identical files. The UltraBand frees up bandwidth on expensive Internet transit links, giving ISPs more control over costs and reducing the need to throttle traffic, institute byte caps or implement other restrictive traffic-engineering practices that can lead to disatisfaction with subscribers and trouble with regulators.

Acceleration: Network operators can deliver video and other forms of multimedia content at close to wire speeds for a superior subscriber experience. They can accommodate more subscribers and gain a competitive advantage.

Control: Network operators can make decisions about what to cache, what to accelerate, who to partner with, and how media is delivered on their networks based on their particular business needs. With this level of control, they can create premium, value-added services for video content – such as services for high-definition content, Web TV “channels,” or localized ad insertion.

With these capabilities, network operators are no longer passive observers but active participants in the Video Internet and its emerging revenue streams.

 
Customer QoE
  "The improvement users report, in terms of network performance and reduced call center volume, far exceeds what would be expected just looking at the bandwidth we save or generate from UltraBand."

 
Steve Waddington, Exetel, Australia		  

To learn more, download the whitepaper: 
Why QoE is Important to Service Providers