Quality of Service is a vital part of the modern operator’s tool kit, never more so than with the arrival of 5G. Why is it so important? Let’s find out…
Why is QoS such an important subject right now? Why, for those in the telecoms industry, is it presently front of mind? It’s crucial for several reasons, because QoS directly impacts the performance, user experience, and efficiency of our communication systems. Let’s look in to how.
QoS underlies differentiated traffic handling
Different types of data transported over the network (for example, voice, video, file transfer, etc.) each have specific and distinct requirements related to factors like latency, jitter, and bandwidth. Variable QoS permits networks to distinguish between them, prioritizing critical traffic like real-time voice or video, while giving lower priority to less time-sensitive traffic like file downloads. Without Qos, operators would be “throwing the baby out with the bathwater”!
It supports network efficiency
QoS empowers network resource optimization, by ensuring that high-priority services continue to perform optimally even when the network is otherwise congested. This allows the operator to avoid overprovisioning and reduce infrastructure costs by ensuring the efficient use of network capacity.
It delivers a better user experience
QoS results in users getting (and paying appropriately for) an expected level of service, be that for a higher rate for gaming or streaming, or maybe a lower one for simply making voice calls. We all know what poor QoS means; dropped calls, buffering, broken video streams, etc., the sort of things that lead to user frustration and, potentially, a switch of service providers. QoS enables operators to mitigate that risk.
It validates Service-Level Agreements (SLAs)
SLAs are (now commonly) guaranteed by operators and variable QoS is in large part the backbone of how those guarantees are met by ensuring that mission-critical applications and customers receive prioritized treatment vs. standard levels.
It’s vital to the future
Networks are evolving to support a range of new technologies; 5G, IoT devices, and more. Variable QoS is essential to managing the growing menu of differing requirements that’s emerging from this evolution, for example helping to make sure that autonomous cars, smart grids, and healthcare applications all work as intended.
And, finally, efficient QoS management means telcos can offer tiered services, where higher-paying customers or premium services get better quality, while lower-tier customers receive adequate but less prioritized service. This means better cost management, from a macro business perspective.
Summary
Taking all the of the above together then, managing variable QoS effectively helps telecom operators to maintain network stability, meet customer expectations, and ensure that the most important services receive priority. In other words, as operators transition to 5G and seek to exploit the full potential of next generation services, QoS is a consideration that’s front of mind and likely to remain so for some time yet.
5G and variable QoS: why it matters
Quality of Service is a vital part of the modern operator’s tool kit, never more so than with the arrival of 5G. Why is it so important? Let’s find out…
Why is QoS such an important subject right now? Why, for those in the telecoms industry, is it presently front of mind? It’s crucial for several reasons, because QoS directly impacts the performance, user experience, and efficiency of our communication systems. Let’s look in to how.
QoS underlies differentiated traffic handling
Different types of data transported over the network (for example, voice, video, file transfer, etc.) each have specific and distinct requirements related to factors like latency, jitter, and bandwidth. Variable QoS permits networks to distinguish between them, prioritizing critical traffic like real-time voice or video, while giving lower priority to less time-sensitive traffic like file downloads. Without Qos, operators would be “throwing the baby out with the bathwater”!
It supports network efficiency
QoS empowers network resource optimization, by ensuring that high-priority services continue to perform optimally even when the network is otherwise congested. This allows the operator to avoid overprovisioning and reduce infrastructure costs by ensuring the efficient use of network capacity.
It delivers a better user experience
QoS results in users getting (and paying appropriately for) an expected level of service, be that for a higher rate for gaming or streaming, or maybe a lower one for simply making voice calls. We all know what poor QoS means; dropped calls, buffering, broken video streams, etc., the sort of things that lead to user frustration and, potentially, a switch of service providers. QoS enables operators to mitigate that risk.
It validates Service-Level Agreements (SLAs)
SLAs are (now commonly) guaranteed by operators and variable QoS is in large part the backbone of how those guarantees are met by ensuring that mission-critical applications and customers receive prioritized treatment vs. standard levels.
It’s vital to the future
Networks are evolving to support a range of new technologies; 5G, IoT devices, and more. Variable QoS is essential to managing the growing menu of differing requirements that’s emerging from this evolution, for example helping to make sure that autonomous cars, smart grids, and healthcare applications all work as intended.
And, finally, efficient QoS management means telcos can offer tiered services, where higher-paying customers or premium services get better quality, while lower-tier customers receive adequate but less prioritized service. This means better cost management, from a macro business perspective.
Summary
Taking all the of the above together then, managing variable QoS effectively helps telecom operators to maintain network stability, meet customer expectations, and ensure that the most important services receive priority. In other words, as operators transition to 5G and seek to exploit the full potential of next generation services, QoS is a consideration that’s front of mind and likely to remain so for some time yet.
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