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December 2, 2020

Traffic Management Challenges and QoE Visibility Are Top Streaming Concerns

Based on research from analyst Dan Rayburn, NS1 report reveals IT teams’ expectations and top priorities for streaming

NEW YORK—December 2, 2020NS1, the leader in modern application and access networking, today released research in partnership with Dan Rayburn that reveals expectations, challenges, and top priorities for IT as video streaming continues to increase in importance within modern business.

Based on a survey conducted by streaming media analyst Dan Rayburn, the new report,Growing Demands for Video Streaming Drive Companies to Intelligent Traffic Management Solutions,” shows that traffic management challenges and visibility into quality of experience (QoE) issues are top concerns for companies that engage in video streaming. As a result, 42% of companies surveyed that do not currently have solutions in place are looking to implement automated, intelligent traffic management in the next 6-12 months.

“Streaming requires content owners to be nimble and resilient within their workflows and infrastructure to deliver streams to end users over many different devices and platforms with a great user experience,” said Rayburn. “Companies gain additional benefits and can address top-reported viewer concerns by selecting traffic steering platforms that ingest quality of experience metrics—real-time data about playback failures, startup times, rebuffering, and video quality—along with real user monitoring (RUM) and network data.”

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, streaming was already on the rise, but video has become an integral part of entertainment, education, news, business, and people connecting all around the world. Moving into 2021, this trend will continue, as more than half of respondents expect an increase in volume of streaming content over the next year. Of those, 32% say the volume of streaming content could potentially double in the next 12 months, and 10% expect volume to more than double.

Other findings include:

  • Top challenges for maintaining high-quality streaming experiences include lack of visibility into QoE issues (42%), efficient traffic routing across a multi-CDN deployment (33%), and lack of visibility with vendor platforms (33%).
  • 62% of respondents ranked automated and intelligent traffic routing as the most important tool for delivering a positive end-user experience.
  • More than half of respondents lack the appropriate technology to dynamically adjust routing for shifts in network availability, latency, and congestion, which results in inconsistent performance.

NS1’s Commitment to Solving Video Streaming Challenges

As a provider of intelligent traffic steering technology and an integration partner with industry-leading quality of experience monitoring solutions, NS1 is a critical part of the streaming media value chain. In addition to serving many of the streaming industry’s largest content providers, the NS1 team and technology have been instrumental in supporting major livestreaming events. In its commitment to helping streaming service providers deliver the best experiences, NS1 is actively involved in industry organizations, such as the Streaming Video Alliance, that are working to address the industry’s most pressing challenges.

“The video streaming industry is experiencing massive growth, and media companies throughout the value chain are going all-in on innovation to provide the best possible experiences for users,” said Emily Pali, product manager, NS1. “It takes a community of providers to deliver great streaming video experiences at the scale, resilience, and performance required for today’s rapidly growing audience sizes, and we are uniquely positioned to bring valuable insight as we collaborate with others focused on solving these challenges.”

The survey included more than 200 executives from companies of all sizes, primarily concentrated within the media and entertainment, telecommunications, and technology industries. Visit the NS1 website to download the report.

To learn more about NS1’s role in video streaming, visit https://ns1.com/supercharging-streaming-media-with-multi-cdn.

About NS1

NS1 automates the deployment and delivery of the world’s most trafficked internet and enterprise applications. Its software-defined, next-generation application networking stack modernizes DNS, DHCP, and IPAM—the familiar and universal foundations of all network and internet services—to unlock unprecedented automation, visibility, and control in today’s complex, heterogeneous environments. NS1 has more than 650 enterprise customers worldwide, including LinkedIn, Dropbox, Pitney Bowes, Bleacher Report, and The Guardian, and is backed by investments from Energy Impact Partners, Dell Technologies Capital, Cisco Investments, and GGV Capital.

Media contact:

Jennifer Tanner

Look Left Marketing

[email protected]

Direct: 229-834-3004