TV Everywhere dominates content consumption
October 25, 2013
New analysis from Frost & Sullivan’s Global IP Video Network Management Market research finds that by 2016, more than 70 per cent of data traffic on mobile devices will be video, with implications for ensuring quality across the delivery chain.
Video consumption across non-traditional devices such as tablets, smartphones, PCs and connected PCs evolved exponentially into a global phenomenon that is not restricted to a geographic area or a limited number of service providers. With cable TV service providers offering more applications and interactive content, the rising adoption of IP by broadcasters and video service providers, and the growing consolidation among operators, the global IP video network management market benefited greatly, forecast to reach $442.4 million in 2017, from $217.8 million in 2012.
In addition to traditional broadcast services, cable operators are distributing videos over various devices as well. This increases the complexity of the network, which compels operators to adopt IP-based infrastructure. Additionally, increasing multi-screen viewing drives demand for video quality monitoring, especially from the telecommunications segment.
“As broadcasters all over the world upgrade to digital and high-definition (HD) workflows, the deployment of IP networking across the value chain is a certainty,” said Frost & Sullivan Digital Media Research Director Vidya S Nath. “This translates to higher adoption of video network management equipment, such as probes and video analysers, as well as data-mining systems – all of which are critical for analysing quality of service and equipment.”
The process of ensuring overall efficient management of IP video, based on metrics such as quality of experience (QoE) and quality of service (QoS), utilises probes, analysers and data-mining solutions. Probes accounted for the biggest revenue share of the global IP video network management market at 53 per cent in 2012; growing at the expense of analysers. Probes provide real-time and offline quality loss measurement, while analysers monitor compliance with regulatory guidelines, such as closed caption subtitling. Data-mining solutions are the key to QoS and QoE metrics, as this technology monitors the overall health of the network.
“Integrated with the entire network, data-mining solutions are able to provide a level of detail that corresponds to the size of the network,” said Nath. “In addition, evolving data-mining solutions provide system information at the most granular level pertaining to every channel connected to the network, plus pan-geographic location views. As targeted and interactive advertisements increase across devices and applications such as video on demand (VoD), the use of such video monitoring and tracking technologies will grow.”
An IP architecture offers the advantages of scalability and high flexibility to manage and distribute content in real-time. This sets it apart from other technologies such as asynchronous transfer mode (ATM), asynchronous serial interface (ASI), and intermediate frequency (IF)/radio frequency (RF).
“Across end-user verticals, clients clearly indicate video quality is directly linked to survival,” commented Nath. “With the increasing complexity in video delivery, service providers are not merely trying to please their present customers but are also seeking to deploy IP video network management solutions to future-proof their entire delivery ecosystem.”