incognito_incognito 21/05/2015 18:32 Page 1
Offering quality experiences in
an all-IP world
Any business will tell you the most dependable way to
maintain steady growth is to constantly
exceed the expectations of your
customers. In the new age of video
services and broadband delivery, this idea
takes on a whole new meaning, explains
Stephane Bourque, President and CEO,
Incognito Software.
network-wide scale is not enough. It’s no secret
that each user will have a different perception
of what great service quality means, so service
providers must dig deep into their data to
uncover individual user behaviours to align
with individual user experience management
strategies. Gaining this smart network data is
vitally important when developing and
deploying services that go beyond a
subscriber’s expectations.
To plan for smarter data collection, network
The Pressure to Improve Service Quality
subscribers in this new era? And how can
operators must consider all the impacts data
While Facing Stagnant Revenue
service providers differentiate themselves from
extraction has on their regular services. There
For years, service providers were focused on
their competition to retain their customer
are many methods used today to gather data
acquiring new customers, improving internal
base? The answers to these questions are
from a network, but as a rule of thumb
processes, and increasing network speeds to
becoming clearer, and much can be learned
operators should always look for solutions that
build their subscriber base to ensure their
from information already stored within every
can glean network data with automated
businesses flourished. Time-to-market for new
operator’s network.
processes while minimising any service
devices and services had to stay
impacts. If the collection mechanism
competitive. While certainly important,
negatively affects subscriber QoS, then
this method for improving quality of
the service provider has already tipped
service (QoS) quickly became an almost
the scale out of their favour.
routine operation: buy new
On top of that, network data is no
infrastructure, receive a call from a new
good to operation teams if they can’t
subscriber, roll a truck to the
quickly understand it. Providers must
subscriber’s home, install and test the
make use of solutions with automated
customer premises equipment (CPE),
organisation and normalisation of
and be on your way. This unassertive
collected data mounds, and then rapidly
method for improving subscriber service
act based on the results. If not, they risk
quality coupled with the increasing
making customers impatient while
expectations and demands on data might
waiting for resolution to service
just be the reason that service providers
inconsistencies or problems. Once
have been hovering near the bottom of
accurate individual subscriber usage
consumer satisfaction indexes for the
data is normalised into a readable
Automated solutions are helping service providers
last decade.
database, operators open up countless
understand subscriber experiences based on individual
usage and network congestion. Through this, service
Service quality for cable and Internet
new avenues for improving QoE. They
providers can strategically improve subscriber QoE when can begin by optimising the delivery
subscribers has grown to be about so
and where it's necessary — boosting retention rates.
much more than just ensuring a fast
functions of their network to meet
connection, and with cable and Internet
subscriber demands when and where
penetration rates in major markets quickly
Leveraging the Power of Real Network
they are needed.
approaching 100%, service providers can no
Data to improve QoE
For example:
longer rely on an acquisition strategy to ensure
We’ve all heard the buzz term Big Data, and by
l When a business customer is using
survival. In an environment where ARPU and
now most service providers have established a
network resources and adversely affecting
revenue growth are stagnating, subscriber
plan to at least start collecting it. But as the
the QoE for residential subscribers in an
retention is the new name of the game, and
trend for Big Data collection grew steadily over
area, network operation teams can allot
improving quality of experience (QoE)
the last year, something crucial fell through the
more resources to the area to subdue
throughout the duration of a subscriber’s
cracks: operators didn’t have any efficient ways
potential service congestion issues
contract is the foremost method for retaining
to utilise it. In order to meet and maintain the
Service providers also gain new ways to
customers. With technological innovations
expectations of their subscribers, service
tailor service offerings to meet the needs of
continually coming out in an all-IP world, and
providers are now looking to implement
their users.
new competitors banging on the door of almost
solutions that normalise key Big Data insights
every subscriber’s home, service providers are
and then leverage that data to optimise their
For example:
now faced with an ultimatum — discover and
networks and improve their subscribers’
l If a subsc