With the demand for video today on various platforms including online, mobile devices and for everyday viewing, the need for test and measurement tools to quantify video quality metrics is increasingly necessary. No matter what communications or media networks end users are using, quality of experience (QoE) is essential for a successful end result. 

Generally, when there is a problem with the quality of a video source, it remains untraceable, which can create a number of different issues down the line. In order to provide acceptable service levels, voice communications services as well as video broadcast services require objective-perceptual metrics and tools.

Located in Silicon Valley, CA (News - Alert), QoE Systems is a leading provider of voice, audio and video QoE monitoring and quality assessment solutions, founded in 2002. The company’s Q-Master line of test instruments for voice, audio and video quality assessment delivers a test and measurement suite to telecommunications equipment manufacturers and service providers. QoE System’s products utilize ITU perceptual algorithms such as PESQ to test and measure multimedia quality from the end-users perspective.

QoE Systems offers its customers a unique set of solutions including its Q-Master laboratory instruments, software, algorithms, quality monitoring devices, and customized solutions minimizing the issues end users and providers run into and making measuring QoE video quality more easily manageable.

The Q-Master System measures the video quality aspects of video streaming and video telephony communication devices. The Q-Master interprets end-to-end quality video using a measurement referred to as Video Mean Opinion Score (VMOS) in accordance with ITU-T recommendation J.341. The output includes information such as block distortion, blurring, edge busyness, jerkiness, PSNR and noise.

The Q-Master system sends and receives video streams using its internal Video Server, or any other streaming server on the network, allowing developers and operators to assess the correct functioning of networks and devices such as codecs, transcoders and gateways.

According to the company, QoE’s initial product is based on an industry-proven objective-perceptual video quality algorithm which generates critical quality metrics. Each device fulfills engineering requirements to measure the Quality of Experience (QoE) for most network elements, including IPTV (News - Alert) IC’s, STB, Head-ends, Codec’s, etc. Both voice quality and video quality products are ideal for new media applications since they have both digital and analog origination interfaces.

QoE’s customers range from a handful of small companies, to some of the biggest players in the media industry today such as Apple, Microsoft and Intel and the most influential carriers such as Verizon (News - Alert), AT&T and Sprint, just to name a few.

Stefanie Mosca is a Web editor for TMCnet. Previously she worked as a freelance copy editor for Digital Surgeons LLC. She holds a master's degree in journalism from Quinnipiac University and a bachelor's degree in communication from the University of New Haven. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.

Edited by Stefanie Mosca