Any network architecture adopted also needs to be able to accommodate the rapid roll-out of new services and deliver those services reliably, while at the same time being flexible enough to allow for unforeseen changes in demand in the services mix.
Service providers must also consider the trends in high-bandwidth offerings such as IPTV and their potential impact on network performance parameters such as delay or packet loss. Scalability to support thousands of subscribers at any one time and the resulting impact on performance and operational costs must also be prepared for. It is imperative that the network is easy to scale and simple to operate to cope with increasing bandwidth requirements.
The traditional method of dealing with peaks in consumer bandwidth demand has been to over-provision networks. While voice services are predictable due to lower bandwidth needs and more established usage patterns, demand for capacity can vary enormously across data and video-based services depending on the time of day or user location among other factors. Put simply, over-provisioning is no longer an option in an IPTV world. Integrating performance-grade Ethernet functionality into the metro aggregation network provides a simple, reliable, and cost-effective means to deliver multiple IP-based services to the consumer, including VOD, and broadcast video. For example, implementing new video services using IPTV stream multicasting is far easier in an Ethernet-based framework due to Ethernet’s inherent capability to multicast video streams over the network to multiple end subscribers. However, the key factor in Ethernet-based architecture is the use of connection-oriented Ethernet transport to improve and extend Quality of Service (QoS) enforcement, security, and reliability throughout the metro aggregation network. The Ethernet-optimised solution combines connection-oriented Ethernet with Optical Transport Network (OTN) and Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) to enable a scalable, deterministic, and simplified service architecture, providing the most efficient distribution and aggregation of IP flows between the access network and IP services edge. Conclusion It is essential for ISPs to consider robustness, service quality, scalability and the flexibility to adapt to changing customer requirements when architecting their network to successfully deliver new video-based services such as IPTV. ISPs must look to build networks that overcome current shortcomings, delivering a high level of network and service availability. Networks must perform to a much stricter QoS to reduce jitter, latency and packet loss for video delivery while enabling the fast rollout of new services or changes to the current service mix. Finally, owning the aggregation, transport, and control access networks will allow ISPs to differentiate video-based services more easily while expanding market coverage quickly and cost-effectively.
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