Broadband Evolution & Service Control Based Network Intelligence

BY OREN RABOY

From their inception, broadband data services have been a driver for many technological and cultural changes. Through the past several years, significant developments in broadband access technology for both DSL and cable markets have turned high-speed Internet access from a concept to a standard, which led to the deployment of massive, multi-gigabyte networks. Development of the broadband access technology and higher throughput of core networks has led to the symbiotic growth of broadband users and applications (P2P, interactive gaming, VoD).

The deployment of IP broadband services occurs in three phases:

• Phase 1: Connecting. In this phase, network providers build advanced networks that bring raw IP connectivity to subscribers. This phase is complete in many markets.
• Phase 2: Services. In this phase, network providers will begin delivering value-added services (from VPNs for enterprises to video-on-demand for homes), and will begin investing in the systems to enable and control these services.
• Phase 3: Service Control. In this phase, service providers will use service control systems and more sophisticated networks to further personalize and optimize high-margin IP services. Phase 3 will lead to compelling bundled service offerings that will deliver unprecedented value and convenience to the consumer, preserving customer loyalty while driving new revenues.

The fundamental challenge for broadband service providers today is to add the service awareness and control capabilities they need for phases 2 and 3 while leveraging their existing infrastructure investments.

While the growth of broadband data services has been impressive in the last seven years, the industry is facing various operational issues stemming from its very success. Bandwidth use per subscriber is growing rapidly and the character of that use is shifting. Meanwhile, providers are functioning without the operational information they need to make informed policy decisions, or to accurately capture revenues from subscribers whose applications and usage levels vary widely.

These new requirements are coupled with the realization that flat-fee �one-size-fits-all� broadband access is appealing to early adopters but not necessarily so to the mass-market � the financial feasibility of this offering is unacceptable for most service providers. As a result of heavy discounting, prices for broadband Internet access have dropped to commodity levels, with decreasing margins left for service-providers. With the current prices of broadband Internet access, it is clear that providers need to extract additional value from each broadband access line to increase ARPU as well as create targeted service offerings that appeal to a large subscriber-base.

SERVICE CONTROL -- THE NETWORK INTELLIGENCE TO ANALYZE, OPTIMIZE & DIFFERENTIATE
Service Control, the IN-equivalent for data networks, fills the gap between transport infrastructure and network intelligence needed for broadband services.  A Service Control Platform (SCP) is a programmable network device with a purpose built hardware architecture, specifically optimized to analyze and control network traffic based on application and subscriber criteria.

The SCP�s unsurpassed abilities to perform deep packet inspection and stateful traffic tracking enable the system to:

• Analyze: Generate usage statistics and information on application and service usage at individual subscribers' granularity.

• Optimize: Optimize network traffic by prioritizing and controlling how  bandwidth is distributed between applications, according to type, origin/destination and content.

• Differentiate: Policy based control and reporting on network traffic. Assignment of those policies to network activities of individual subscribers dynamically.

The SCP�s carefully crafted APIs and integration tools provide a convenient and simple methodology to integrate policies into the network�s OSS and back-office systems, creating a robust framework for the delivery of tiered service plans and premium IP services.

Analyze
The SCP generates usage information and statistics on the network activities of subscribers according to the applications, protocols and services consumed.  The platform�s ability to statefully track network traffic and classify it according to actual application usage provides visibility into network activities that is unavailable using traditional transport infrastructure. This insight is valuable for the design and creation of new service plans, and also provides the usage metering information from which these services can be billed:

• Trend And Usage Analysis: Through the collection of usage information and the generation of detailed reports, the service provider obtains a better understanding of which applications are being used. Reports detailing the volume of bandwidth consumed used by different applications and the subscribers responsible for it allow the provider to segment and profile the subscriber behavior and by extracting trends from this data, determine the most appropriate service plans. 

• Traffic Optimization Monitoring: Usage statistics are critical for the design and creation of traffic optimization policies that ensure network operations are streamlined and provider network capacity costs are controlled.

• Usage-Based Billing: Usage information collected at subscriber level granularity is a fundamental part of per-use billing plans.  While market conditions will not allow for usage-based billing in general Internet access plans, some advanced services and tiered pricing plans can. For example, volume limits and quotas for bandwidth intensive applications such as peer-to-peer (P2P) or video conferencing can be offered in combination with service plans that offer a low fixed monthly cost.  As subscribers exceed the limits for these specific applications, their plan allows them to continue to use the applications on a pay-per-use basis.

Optimize
Broadband data service usage levels increase due to the explosive popularity of "broadband ready" applications such as P2P file sharing and video chat. When the provider offers a premium service, the provider is responsible for delivery at specific performance levels in order to justify the higher cost of service to the end user. Premium applications and user traffic must be prioritized such that sufficient bandwidth is dedicated to the service and its performance remains at the promised level. 

Network optimization is of particular importance for the service provider when applications that can potentially cannibalize all available bandwidth are present (P2P client applications for example).  Large amounts of P2P network traffic have a negative effect on the performance of "premium services," and often can leave the whole network starved for bandwidth. The SCP�s bandwidth shaping mechanisms enable service providers to control network resource allocation and improve network performance for critical applications and users. This ensures profitability from data services by improving network performance for all applications and improving the broadband experience for the end users

Differentiate
Service providers offering customized subscription plans can use  the SCP as both the bandwidth control enforcement point and the consolidated usage metering system for billing and the OSS. The bandwidth control policies that can be enforced by the SCP include application/content specific criteria and others such as time-of-day, origin/destination, usage-quotas etc.  Multiple policies can be defined and applied in real time on network traffic flows. The simple yet robust APIs provided by the platform offer dynamic service policy provisioning as well as a real-time collection methodology of network metering information.  With these facilities the platform is well suited to provide the network control point of dynamic environments supporting usage-based billing and subscriber self-care. Using self-care Web portals, subscribers can select new service plans or elect to upgrade their existing subscription for a given period of time (the �Turbo Button� concept). 

CONCLUSION
With broadband access technology at the point of maturity and the majority of the access and transport networks in place, service providers are trying to increase their revenue streams and drive profitability. While bandwidth intensive applications like P2P pose a technical and �economy of scale� challenge, they also present opportunities to develop new service plans and expand the subscriber base.

Service Control gives service providers the means to harness these opportunities by optimizing the way network resources are allocated between users and applications, and to create new service offerings and service tiers.

Oren Raboy is Sr. Product Marketing Manager with P-Cube, Inc. P -Cube is the pioneer of programmable IP Service Control Platforms that enable service providers to create profitable new revenue streams while capitalizing on their existing infrastructures. With the power of P-Cube�s Service Control Platform, service providers have the ability to analyze, charge for and control IP network traffic at multi-Gigabit wireline speeds. The P-Cube solution also gives service providers the tools they need to identify and target high-margin, content-based services.

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