qarva_qarva 01/09/2015 13:28 Page 2
“The ultimate trick play: Qarva Pix.”
be taken from source and streamed over the
Internet to subscribers all over the world in
original quality and all from one server.”
The aQua VideoServer and MultiPipe
bring major benefits to IPTV managed
services and OTT providers. For managed
networks, Qarva has also addressed another
key challenge of IP video provision; slow
channel change. Qarva FastSwitch cuts
channel change time 10 fold: typical channel
change times in IP are 2-5 seconds – with
FastSwtich this becomes 0.2 seconds.
Research has shown that channel change
time is a function that is fundamental to
QoE and FastSwitch transforms
performance.
The Fast Channel Change (FCC) server
inserted between the multicast network and
the set top creates a multichannel buffer
meaning ‘zapper’ queries are answered
instantaneously. The same buffer also
means massive improvement in the other
common failing of IPTV; freezing and
blocking from packet loss. The FCC server’s
buffer means packet losses have already
been recovered when the subscriber sees the
channel.
And, like all Qarva solutions, FastSwitch
features universal compatibility with legacy
hardware and software, low integration cost
and low capacity demand on legacy systems.
The aQua Video Server also enables
industry-leading implementation of trick
play functionality for IP Television.
Delivering trick play solutions has been a
real challenge in IPTV as there is no easy
way to instantly rewind Variable Bit Rate
(VBR) live TV streams, until now. aQua’s
technology allows one touch instant rewind
and slow motion play from live
TV without deterioration in
quality. Using novel indexing
technology, aQua offers
precision performance in
response to user input with no
lag between input and
execution.
When viewers Timeshift or
Rewind or Restart, they expect speed and
accuracy. Our unique indexing method
ensures absolute precision. aQua Video
Server features three storage tiers: RAM,
Flash and hard drive, with subscriber usage
“Up to 32 servers can be
concurrently
connected.”
data deployed to index content to the
appropriate store so the most requested
content is delivered the most quickly.
aQua Video Server delivers content
smoothly and efficiently and provides
industry leading performance for:
l Timeshifting – CatchUp/StartOver TV
l Instant Rewind from Live TV
l Slow Motion from Live
TV/Timeshifting
l Network PVR
l VoD
l Precision response to trick play
commands – REW/FF/PLAY
For the provider this means increasing
ARPU and reducing churn with service
enhancements within the framework of a
cost effective, quick to deploy solution:
l Cost efficient use of hardware –
200Gbps per COTS 2U Server
l Easy to scale; simply add more
servers and benefit from automatic
load balancing and geographical
balancing
Unlimited horizontal scalability allows
service providers to easily Scale Out,
reducing expansion cost and conserving
space while still allowing room to grow.
aQua VideoServer’s very
economic use of hardware
means high efficiency with an
average server streaming
capacity of 200 Gb/sec. This
means aQua’s streams are
highly cost effective with
servers providing double or
triple the capacity when
compared to others on the market. aQua
servers also feature automated load and
geographic balancing.
At TV Connect in London in spring 2015,
Qarva unveiled the ultimate in IP Television
trick play; Qarva Pix. This is a unique
feature providing 'slide rewinding' similar to
that seen on smart phones. Using a finger
the viewer can scroll the video content
forward or back and stop. The amount of
content the scrolling frames represent is
user chosen; an hour, a minute, a second. It
is a h