Organizations of all sizes are evolving to an enlightened, business-focused method of choosing network services and service providers called Total Customer Experience (TCE). This white paper describes the evolution toward a TCE approach and the benefits and clarity that TCE brings to the marketplace.
QOS, QOE & TOTAL CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE by James P. Cavanagh, Analyst and Consultant, The Consultant Registry Business success requires productively and simply leveraging an increasingly rich menu of IP network-based Multimedia, Internet, Communications and Entertainment (MICE) capabilities. Due to the sophistication required to provide, support and manage MICE capabilities they are often purchased as services from a service provider. Because MICE services are critical to business success, organizations of all sizes are evolving to an enlightened, business-focused method of choosing network services and service providers called Total Customer Experience (TCE). This white paper describes the evolution toward a TCE approach and the benefits and clarity that TCE brings to the marketplace.
Network Services Evolution Who's In Charge? The Internet began as a "best effort" service where all When leased lines predominated, engineers provided packets were created equal: a shared alternative to dedi- specifications but the business office purchased the cated and expensive leased lines. As data, voice and services, usually with little choice of provider. The video multimedia triple play services emerged packets business office was in charge. Next, in the "best effort" were no longer equal. "Best effort" gave way to Quality days of IP networking, the business office paid the bill of Service (QoS), which prioritizes packets while con- but the network provider actually set the rules and tried sidering the packet delivery, delay, and delay variation to be fair to all parties, giving each packet an equal requirements of the associated application. Recently, as opportunity to share network resources. Then, the net-users become more enlightened and experienced consu- work provider was now in charge. Subsequently, in the mers, emphasis has begun to shift from Quality of Ser- QoS era the engineers were in charge. They juggled vice to Quality of [user] Experience (QoE). QoE either Type of Service (ToS) bits, ingress, queuing and buffer measures, estimates or simulates human users' opinions controls and other technical aspects of IP network of data, voice and video quality. implementation and operation to assure that various flavors of data, voice and video traffic receive proper marking, prioritization and handling. The engineers were now in charge. In the new QoE era control shifted from engineers to users - whose expert opinion, or at least a close mathematical approximation thereof - became the controlling factor. TCE puts the business office back in charge. By using TCE to measure and compare service prov-iders' relative scores on solutions, collaboration, deliv-ery, support and billing the process of service provider selection is becoming a more business-centric function: control is shifting back to business management. Before we discuss TCE in more detail let's take a closer look at Figure 1 - Evolutionary Phases of The Internet and IP Networks an important tool in documenting, describing and enfor-Multimedia services are becoming commoditized, as cing the needs of the purchaser, promises of the seller QoE metrics stabilize, prices approach the lowest levels and penalties for not delivering as promised: the Service they are likely to reach and the field of competitors Level Agreement. becomes packed. Enterprises are searching for other Service Level Agreements (SLAs) meaningful points of differentiation and comparison The SLA is a valuable tool. The SLA survives the besides just price. Truly savvy organizations are re- evolution to Total Customer Experience and its role sponding by adopting a Total Customer Experience increases in importance. As small to medium enter-approach to service selection. prises already know the Service Level Agreement is a Total Customer Experience (TCE) encompasses the contract between an organization and an outside service relative value of five key selection criteria that go bey- provider. Larger organizations may have an internal ond price. TCE includes availability: solutions, collab- department that acts as a service provider. The larger oration, delivery, support and billing. TCE will be dis- organizations will recognize the SLA as a contract with cussed in more detail after some important background an external, or internal, service provider organization. information that sets the scene for a true appreciation of TCE and its benefits.
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