Telcos "aren't sure" if current QoE tools provide sufficient IPTV monitoring

July 10, 2008 - Telcos "aren't sure" if today's IPTV Quality of Experience (QoE) test and measurement tools provide the right level of service monitoring they need, according to a new report from Heavy Reading, despite investing heavily in infrastructure and services to drive new revenues.

"Telcos need real-world metrics to be able to verify the health of the video signal as it traverses the live IP network," said Sam Masud, Senior Analyst for Heavy Reading and author of the report, called 'IPTV Phase II: QoE Is Mission Critical'. "The ability to measure the quality of the video signal delivered to real subscribers is a huge issue that will directly affect the success of telco TV – and that means the ability to monitor the performance right to the TV set, using quantitative metrics to evaluate what essentially is a subjective evaluation."

The report also notes that in light of the huge investment being made by service providers in IPTV, the relatively small size of the video quality measurement market suggests a level of "scepticism, or perhaps confusion" regarding these solutions.

Masud adds that IPTV QoE monitoring can be the most expensive test and measurement initiative for telcos, but it is essential to guarantee user satisfaction. "With video services, telcos are entering a very competitive market sector in which baseline expectations have already been set by cable and satellite network operators.  Telcos at minimum have to match the perceived quality of existing services before they can expect to leverage some of IP's inherent advantages as a video delivery platform."

Specialist suppliers that are named as potentially significant players in the IPTV Quality of Experience market include Bridge Technologies, Pixelmetrix, Shenick Network Systems, and Witbe.