Ericsson Review No.

3, 2007
79
Introduction to IPTV
IPTV, as an operator service over broad-
band networks, has been available for some
time. Until recently, however, it has mainly
been offered in small networks or in parts
of networks. Figure 1 shows the anticipated
increase in trafc over broadband access net-
works. This increase will largely be driven by
IPTV service.
Even though todays networks have been
built to support triple-play service, upgrad-
ing them to support mass deployment of
IPTV service will be a major challenge. This
is because the new media experience this
service provides is not restricted to passively
viewing broadcasted content but rather pres-
ents end users with interactive and person-
alized media, including on-demand content
and combinational communication services.
1

To meet these challenges, operators are in-
vesting in deep-ber access
2
and upgrading
their IP edge capabilities.
Ultimately, the network must support an
increasing portion of unicast trafc (that is,
dedicated media streams to individual us-
ers). Notwithstanding, multicast trafc will
continue to be an important feature for ef-
ciently distributing content to many users.
Another challenging issue relates to the
efcient distribution of content while guar-
anteeing the quality of the IPTV media ex-
perience. In summary, to successfully deliver
this service, the network must scale well and
be exible in order to account for user uptake
and future services.
This article describes the IPTV network
infrastructure as currently deployed by
Ericsson and how it can evolve into the Full
Service Broadband architecture, thereby sup-
porting the new media experience of IPTV.
The broadband access
network
The broadband access network must support
quality of service (QoS), multicast, the separa-
tion of end-user trafc, and differentiate be-
tween services; it must be secure and robust
(with high in-service performance); and it
must have a telecommunications management
solution that supports network operation and
maintenance (O&M). Many of these features
have been standardized in DSL Forum speci-
cation TR-101, which calls for an Ethernet-
based aggregation network.
3
Figure 2 shows a
simplied view of the network architecture.
The key network elements in Ericssons
broadband portfolio are
access nodes the network must support a
large range of access technologies, includ-
ing a variety of DSL technologies, point-to-
point Ethernet over ber or CAT5/6, and

gigabit passive optical network (GPON)

technology;
metro aggregation nodes metro net-
works transport trafc between access and
IP edge nodes and provide transport-based
connectivity services in their own right;
and
IP edge nodes a versatile IP edge plat-
form for enhanced network efciency and
simplied operations in a single MSER
platform.
There is also a policy-control function
that manages per-user policy proles and
QoS settings (Figure 2). The addition of
Entrisphere (GPON) and Redback (MSER)
products to an already comprehensive broad-
band access portfolio (which includes the for-
mer Marconi access and transport products
as well as Ericssons own access products) en-
ables Ericsson to offer a highly competitive
portfolio that supports the requirements of
IPTV service and the evolution toward Full
Service Broadband.
Supporting features
The IPTV service puts unique demands on
every node in the broadband network. For
instance, to deliver unicast and multicast
video services, the network must provide
continuous bandwidth, IP control features,
and scalability. In addition, it must provide
the same level of exibility and reliability as
are associated with telecom carriers services.
Efcient and reliable multicast
To enable cost-effective distribution of linear
TV over the broadband network (by reduc-

Network infrastructure for IPTV

Peter Arberg, Torbjrn Cagenius, Olle V. Tidblad, Mats Ullerstig and Phil Winterbottom
Millions of people around the world already subscribe to IPTV over broad-
band networks, and looking ahead, the anticipated uptake in subscribers
is substantial.
Two factors an operator should take into account when designing an
IPTV-capable broadband network are the expected mix of unicast and
multicast content and the range of combinational services, including com-
munication services.
The authors describe Ericssons IPTV solution, calling special atten-
tion to the network infrastructure, which emphasizes recent additions of
GPON ber access and Multi Service Edge Routers (MSER) to the product
portfolio. They also highlight experiences garnered from several years of
deploying broadband networks for IPTV delivery.
TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
ASP Application service provider
BFD Bidirectional forward detection
DLNA Digital Living Network Alliance
DSL Digital subscriber line
DVB Digital video broadcasting
ETSI European Telecommunications
Standards Institute
FRR Fast reroute
GPON Gigabit passive optical network
HDTV High-denition television
IGMP Internet group multicast protocol
IMS IP Multimedia Subsystem
IPTV IP television
ISP Internet service provider
ITU-T International Telecommunications
Union Telecommunication
Standardization Sector
MPLS Multiprotocol label switching
MSER Multi Service Edge Router
nPVR Network PVR
OS Operating system
PIM-SM Protocol-independent multicast
sparse mode
PIM-SSM Protocol-independent multicast
source-specic multicast
PVR Personal video recorder
QoS Quality of service
TISPAN Telecommunications and Internet
converged Services and Protocols
for Advanced Networking
(a technical committee of ETSI)
VDSL2 Very-high bit rate DSL
Review3.07.indd 79 07-10-08 10.26.40
Ericsson Review No. 3, 2007
80
ing network load), the service makes use of
IP and Ethernet multicast throughout the
network. Multicast begins as a single stream
that is transported through the network to
a point as close to the intended recipients
(end users) as possible. The stream is then
duplicated for hundreds or even thousands
of end-users who receive the same data at the
same time without overloading the network
or video server.
The switched nodes in the IPTV network
must support the internet group multicast
protocol (IGMP), which hosts (for example,
set-top boxes) use to join or leave multicast
streams (a multicast stream is equivalent to
a TV channel). For efcient multicasting,
IGMP needs to be implemented throughout
the access network and as close as possible to
the intended end users.
Moreover, to support a variety of carrier
network modes, every node in the IPTV
network must have a exible and scalable
multicast implementation. To limit the
number of IGMP reports processed in the
network, some carriers choose a model which
suppresses IGMP reports or which uses an
IGMP proxy in the access node. Other car-
riers choose a transparent IGMP snooping
model which enables the IP edge router to
see every IGMP request and implements
full subscriber awareness at the IP edge.
The service must also support high-
availability multicast at the IP layer, pri-
marily from the IP backbone network to the
IP edge routers. To manage layer-3 multi-
cast trafc, the IP edge router employs the
PIM-SM or PIM-SSM-with-graceful-restart
multicast protocols. This feature makes
certain the multicast streams are delivered
to the IP edge router in a timely and reli-
able fashion. Different functionalities, such
as bidirectional forward detection (BFD) in
combination with PIM dual-join or multi-
protocol label switching (MPLS) fast reroute
(FRR), can be used to detect network failure
and reroute trafc without disrupting the
end-user experience.
Apart from the multicast features men-
tioned here, Ericssons IPTV multicast so-
lution supports GPON-specic multicast,
Figure 2
Architecture of the broadband access network.
DSL
Backbone
connectivity
lPTv
head end
lP Edge
Metro transport
Broadband
access
lPTv
end users
Copper access
GPON fiber
GPON
Ethernet
P-to-P
Metro
node
MSER
Metro
node
Policy
control
P2P Ethernet
fiber or CAT5/6
Metro
node
Real time
broadcast
Stored
content
Cached
content
Figure 1
Trafc increase in broadband networks.
Traff|c |n f|xed access network
M||||on te||aoyte / yea|
2005
300
lPTv
lnternet
voice
250
200
150
100
50
0
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Yea|
Review3.07.indd 80 07-10-08 10.26.41
Ericsson Review No. 3, 2007
81
according to ITU-T standard G.984.
4
In this
case, the passive splitting of the optical net-
work is used to deliver a single video stream
(TV channel) to every viewer served by the
passive optical network in question. This
feature can be used in combination with
the IP and Ethernet multicast techniques to
further enhance the efciency of bandwidth
usage over the passive optical network.
Unicast services
A unicast delivery model is required to de-
liver unique content to a single user. Unicast
service establishes a point-to-point connec-
tion between a users set-top box and the
media in the network. The service request
establishes several parameters, including
bandwidth, quality of service, and latency.
In many instances, unicast services, such
as video on demand (VoD) and network per-
sonal video recorder (nPVR), are delivered
from a central media server in the service
layer network. And it is anticipated that a
greater share of services, driven by inter-
activity and personalization of the IPTV
service, will be delivered as unicast trafc
that is, as an individual media stream to
each end user. As a consequence, it will be-
come necessary to distribute content closer
to end users, in order to minimize the num-
ber of unicast streams and thereby trafc
load on the backbone network. For simple
use cases, the solution might be to add a
PVR in the home. To cover a broader range
of services, however, a network-based media
cache is required. Media cache servers are
already being distributed to some extent,
but to attain scalability, more efcient solu-
tions are being investigated. One solution
is to integrate the distributed media cache
with nodes in the broadband network for
example, the IP edge node, which has been
optimized to transport user data, including
video streams. Figure 3 shows the difference
between unicast and multicast video deliv-
ery in the broadband access network.
Scalability and exibility for increasing
trafc demand
To support the evolving IPTV service, the
broadband network must be scalable in
several dimensions, the most important of
which are service penetration (for support of
up to 100% service uptake), network capac-
ity (driven by high denition TV, HDTV,
and unicast services), and service mix (scal-
able and exible support for the introduction
of new services).
Although the initial service penetration
rates may be moderate, on average, the net-
work architecture must, from the outset,
be exible enough to handle substantially
higher penetration rates in smaller sections
of the service area, driven, for example, by
local word-of-mouth reports of the service.
Obviously, network capacity is directly
related to service penetration, but it is also
a matter of network architecture (degree of
exibility). To support high levels of pene-
tration, heavy simultaneous usage, multiple
channels per home, and high-bandwidth
services (driven to a large extent by unicast
and HDTV trafc) the broadband network
must provide sufcient bandwidth both for
switching capacity and transport connec-
tions.
One must also be able to police viewers
bandwidth requests. Indeed, a network with
sufcient capacity for multicast video might
not scale well as the service mix transitions
from multicast to unicast combined with an
increasing ratio of high-denition content.
To meet the anticipated demand in trafc,
the broadband network architecture must
exibly and efciently be able to move ca-
pacity where it is needed most, for example,
by means of exible VDSL2 drops in com-
pact outdoor cabinets.
The scalability dimension pertains to the
evolution of the service mix. Over time,
IPTV will give end users an interactive and
personalized media experience that includes
on-demand content and combinational com-
munication services. At present, however, it
is difcult to say what the rate of service up-
take will be or what requirements a future
service mix will put on the network.
The network design must facilitate mov-
ing services further out in the network for
example, by moving video-on-demand serv-
ers closer to end users to free up bandwidth
in metro and backbone networks. In many
instances, this will mean placing the IP edge
routers further out in the network.
IPTV network
infrastructure deployments
Ericssons IPTV network infrastructure
portfolio plays a key role in many major
commercial IPTV deployments. Custom-
ers who have leveraged Ericsson broadband
infrastructure for IPTV include Belgacom,
China Netcom, China Telecom, Chunghwa
Telecom, KPN, and TeliaSonera. The top
reasons given for selecting Ericssons solution
include exibility, reliability, scalability, and
a migration path from existing infrastruc-
ture.
Figure 3
Broadband access networks must support the delivery of unicast and multicast services.
Backbone
connectivity
lPTv
head end
lP Edge
Metro transport
Broadband
access
lPTv
end users
Multicast Tv channels transported once and viewed by many
Customer unique point-to-point unicast for e.g. time shift and voD
DSL
GPON
Ethernet
P-to-P
MSER
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Ericsson Review No. 3, 2007
82
Customer reference case
Some of the largest and most challenging
IPTV deployments to date comprise the TV
service offered by incumbent telephone op-
erators. Although the rst commercial IPTV
services were launched only a few years ago,
they have already gained tremendous sub-
scriber acceptance. TeliaSonera, for example,
has more than 200,000 IPTV subscribers.
Likewise, Chunghwa Telecom intends to
increase its IPTV subscriber base to around
600,000 by the end of 2007.
The requirement for rapid scalability and
the need to limit nancial expenditures mo-
tivate carriers to focus on a shared Ethernet
network infrastructure
5
for all their services,
including IPTV. A consistent service offer-
ing across existing access technologies, such
as various DSL technologies, and new and
emerging access technologies, such as GPON
and point-to-point ber, will have a decisive
role in any IPTV rollout plan. To compete
with existing cable, satellite, and terrestrial
TV providers, one must secure reliable deliv-
ery of video and the exibility needed to in-
troduce complex new services over different
access technologies while still fullling the
demand for personalization, service bundling
and interactivity.
Besides functionality to ensure carrier-
class reliability through a modular operat-
ing system and advanced QoS feature sets,
key network components to secure a success-
ful IPTV deployment include SmartEdge
MSER subscriber functionality coupled with
the EDA 1200 broadband access nodes and
EDA 1500 GPON systems, which support
per-subscriber multicast replication and per-
subscriber service utilization visibility. This
combination provides optimal bandwidth
and a very secure network infrastructure,
giving operators control through an individ-
ual subscriber view of voice, video and data
delivery, and making certain the correct data
rate and priority are assigned to each service.
Evolution toward Full
Service Broadband
The broadband network infrastructure de-
scribed above will be the basis of, and a
prerequisite for, the new IPTV media ex-
perience, taking it beyond linear TV and
sporadic video-on-demand services. The IP
Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) is a standard
for establishing and controlling communica-
tion sessions. By adding an IMS control layer,
IPTV operators can accelerate the introduc-
tion of new services, efciently combine TV
service with communication services, offer
the service over multiple access networks,
and deliver IPTV to any end-user screen. In
essence, the broadband network infrastruc-
ture becomes part of the Full Service Broad-
band architecture.
6
The target IPTV architecture gives users a
mix of broadcast TV, interactivity with TV
programs, video on demand, and network-
based recording. It also supports the integra-
tion of TV service with personalized infor-
mation (including emergency messages) and
communication services.
The architecture uses session initiation
BOX A, SMARTEDGE MSER
The SmartEdge Multi Service Edge Router (MSER) family integrates three key functions into a
single, multi-functional platform that includes edge routing, Ethernet aggregation, and subscriber
management. Designed from the ground-up with availability, scalability, programmability, and
high performance in mind, the product supports 99.999% availability, and scales both physically
and logically to thousands of sessions. It is exible enough to be upgraded to support new servic-
es and can forward packets at line rate even with features enabled. All common equipment and
line cards are hot-swappable, and critical components, such as the Route Processor, can be put
in service in redundant conguration. To improve system reliability, the SmartEdge OS is highly
modular. Every protocol is implemented as a separate process. Innovative software enables fast
failover to a hot standby Route Processor with no interruption to forwarding and near-hitless soft-
ware upgrades. The packet-switching mesh, which employs high-performance ASICs developed
by Redback, is distributed to every line card in other words, there is no single point of failure. A
dedicated processor handles time-critical input/output (I/O) functions, such as fault and perfor-
mance monitoring, and alarms. Power and return lines are diversely routed across the backplane
to every slot in the chassis.
Optimization for video service delivery on the SmartEdge MSER is showcased with highly scal-
able multicast for traditional broadcast video services, as well as support for advanced video-on-
demand services via application-level trafc control on a per-user basis. A single platform for deliv-
ery of multiple services minimizes capital expenditures (CAPEX) and operating expenses (OPEX).
Figure 4
Functional blocks of the IPTV architecture.
IMS serv|ce contro|
Mu|t| Access Edge
Metro
transport
Broadband
access
IPTV serv|ce |ayer
ADSL2+
vDSL2
GPON
P2P Ethernet
over fiber or CAT5/6
Carrier Ethernet
xWDM
Multi Service
Edge Routing
Policy control
lMS core
Customized
service control
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Ericsson Review No. 3, 2007
83
protocol (SIP) for session control signaling,
and IMS for authenticating and authorizing
subscribers, controlling admission, and re-
serving resources.
The benets of using IMS as a control
mechanism are
integration with communication services,
such as multimedia telephony, and mes-
saging, which greatly enhances the user
experience;
security thanks to built-in identity
management, authentication, authoriza-
tion and service-access-protection func-
tions;
mechanisms for supporting the delivery
of multiple services with controllable QoS
over the common managed transport;
mechanisms for supporting interactivity
and the personalization of IPTV services;
and
ability to deliver the service over multiple
types of access networks.
In summary, the IMS-based IPTV solution
brings interactivity, personalization, and
mobile convergence to the TV service.
Figure 4 gives an overview of the func-
tional blocks of the IPTV architecture, in-
cluding the IMS control layer as an enabler
of the Full Service Broadband architecture.
The interfaces between the IMS layer and
the broadband network are primarily for
controlling session QoS and policies.

Standardization
The DSL Forum TR-101 and ETSI TISPAN
Release 1 specications dene interfaces for
QoS and resource control, ensuring adequate
QoS, trafc separation, and resource allocation.
The Full Service Broadband IPTV archi-
tecture is based on standard IPTV protocols,
as specied by DVB (Digital Video Broad-
casting Project), and complemented with
standards, such as IMS and DLNA (Digital
Living Network Alliance), to achieve an end-
to-end IPTV architecture.
The Open IPTV Forum was launched
in March 2007 to harmonize the IPTV
standard by dening an interoperable,
end-to-end specication for the delivery
of IPTV services. The forum, will em-
phasize the development of open stan-
dards that help to streamline and acceler-
ate the deployment of IPTV technologies.
7
Conclusion
As an operator-provided service over broad-
band access networks, IPTV has been avail-
able for some time but only in small net-
works or parts of networks.
Todays broadband networks can support
the introduction of triple-play services, but
upgrading them to support mass deployment
of IPTV service will be a major challenge
because the new media experience that
IPTV service provides is not restricted to
passively viewing broadcasted content. On
the contrary, it presents end users with inter-
active and personalized media. IPTV service
thus puts unique demands on every node in
the broadband network. For instance, to de-
liver unicast and multicast video services,
the network must provide high bandwidth,
IP control features, and scalability. It must
also provide the same level of exibility and
reliability that are associated with telecom
carriers services.
To optimize the customer experience and
enable cost-effective delivery of linear broad-
cast TV, the service makes use of IP and
Ethernet multicast throughout the network.
To support the evolving IPTV service, the
broadband network must be able to scale in
several dimensions, the most important of
which are service penetration, network ca-
pacity, and service mix.
By adding an IMS control layer to the
broadband network infrastructure, opera-
tors can accelerate the introduction of new
services, efciently combine the TV service
with communication services, and offer the
service over multiple access networks. In
essence, the IPTV network infrastructure
becomes part of the Full Service Broadband
architecture.
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Baker, J., Cagenius, T., Goodwin, C., Hansson, M. and Hatas, M.: Deep-ber broadband
access networks. Ericsson Review, Vol. 84(2007)1, pp 4-8
DSL Forum TR-101 - Migration to Ethernet-based DSL Aggregation, April 2006
ITU-T Gigabit-capable Passive Optical Network standards G.984
Green, H., Monette, S., Olsson, J., Saltsidis, P. and Takcs, A.: Carrier Ethernet: The native
approach. Ericsson Review, Vol. 84(2007)3, pp 84-89
White paper on Full Service Broadband: www.ericsson.com/technology/whitepapers/
3098_Full_Service_Broadband_Arch_A.pdf
Cedervall, M., Horn, U., Hu, Y., Ivars, I. and Nsstrm, T.: Open IPTV Forum Toward an open
IPTV standard. Ericsson Review, Vol. 84(2007)3, pp 74-78
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