DRAFT:- Consultative Document on the Quality of Service Guidelines
1. Introduction
1.1 The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) recognises that in order to be a leading world class communications regulator, it ought to ensure compliance with the communications services regulating framework through the management and monitoring of quality of service. PURA has to ensure that both business and residential users enjoy choice, quality and the best possible price in respect of telecommunications services. This can be achieved by setting parameters, which define the properties of the desired service quality.
1.2 Quality of service is inherently an end-to-end requirement and as such the concept is only attractive if the presentation at the user interface satisfies his or her needs. Networks and systems are gradually being designed in consideration of end-to-end performance required by user applications.
1.3 There are different perspectives on quality of service, which should be observed by service providers and service users and these perspectives lead to different service models. Like other services, telecommunications services have a quality component and a price component.
1.4 A prerequisite to effective quality of service management is the existence of quality of service parameters or metrics, which should be simple to use, proven accurate representations of customer perception and commonly accepted standards.
1.5 This paper raises some aspects of quality of service having regard to both the service management and the network performance aspects. It includes some questions which should form the basis of discussion and comment.
1.6 In the event of ambiguity between the licence conditions, the guidelines or the Act then the following order of precedence will prevail:
The Act;
The Telecommunications Regulations;
The Licence; and
The Guidelines.
2. Purpose of the guidelines
2.1 The guidelines will specify network service quality parameters that enable services to be offered to users in order to satisfy their quality of service expectations. These parameters relate to both implementation and ongoing use of service.
2.2 The guidelines will support subjective service assessments by measurement of clearly defined objective measurements of service quality for networks that meet their performance objectives.
2.3 The guidelines will encourage the implementation of a quality of service framework whereby the quality of service of operators in the market will be measured, reported and published based on definitions and measurement methodology uniformly applied across the industry. Universal minimum standards will therefore be applied across the industry.
2.4 The guidelines will also provide for consumer satisfaction surveys which would be used to monitor QoS. The monitoring scope covers fixed line, Mobile and broadband Internet.
2.5 The purpose of the guidelines will be to set service standards so as to ensure that consumers are given satisfactory level of services that meet minimum and acceptable standards. The objective will also be to protect and enhance the rights of consumers in obtaining quality services. Quality of service standards also give consumers clear and specific criteria through which the quality of services received or used can be gauged. The role of PURA therefore, is to create an environment which is conducive to the growth of the telecommunications sector and to safeguard customer’s interest.
2.6 PURA thus has a substantive role in laying down standards, assessment of quality of service and action for improvements through the following processes:
Consultation with Stakeholders;
Setting of quality of service standards;
Monitoring;
Publication of measurements and reports;
Enforcement.
2.7 In case of any inadequacy in the terms and conditions of the licences, the guidelines may be used to amplify or extend any of the terms and conditions of the licences. The Authority however reserves the right to depart from the guidelines where circumstances justify such action.
2.8 The guidelines will be subject to review and may be amended following consultation with interested parties in light of experience of their operations, development in the telecommunications market and of any relevant changes to the telecommunications laws and regulations.
2.9 The Authority also recognises that there is a wide range of services that may be provided within the industry. The characteristics of these services differ depending on the technology used and the type of service being delivered. Without due care, the administration of quality of service standards could become onerous. The Authority therefore wishes to establish a common framework for the measurement, improvement and where applicable, guarantees of levels of service that can apply to all types of services. The performance levels specified will be the same for all operators of equivalent services.
It is on that basis that an integral view of quality of service for both providers and users of a service should be strived for.
3. Key Principles
3.1 The key principles in QoS include the following:
- Speed;
- Accuracy
- Reliability
- Flexibility
- Availability
- Performance
- Transparency
- Non-Discrimination
4. Rationale for QoS guidelines
4.1 The degree of consumer satisfaction bears a direct relation with quality of service where good quality of service gives better customer satisfaction and bad quality of service leads to dissatisfaction of the consumers. By bringing in competition and giving free choice to select an operator, the market share of an operator would largely depend on the quality of service and the price. More discerning customers might even opt to pay a higher price for a better quality of service. Consumer complaints on the other hand represent the negative perception of quality of service.
4.2 Network performance is an important element of quality of service and relates to the technical part of the quality of service parameters. It covers planning, development, operations and maintenance of the network. Quality of service is a service attribute, it is user oriented and is focused on user observable effects at or between the service access points, whereas, the network performance by itself is focussed on technical aspects.
4.3 PURA proposes short term and long term targets with a view to induce the operators to review, upgrade and improve the existing quality of service levels in phases. The period for short term and long term targets shall be fixed after consultation. The benchmarks, as well as the targets, must be realistic and it is expected that operators should be able to achieve them. The difference between technologies employed e.g. wireline and wireless technologies has been appreciated and, therefore, the standards and targets for certain quality of service parameters for different technologies have to be given separately.
4.4 The service management parameters refer to sales and planning, service provisioning, billing, fault repair and the support and responsiveness to a customer. The quality of service being a collective result of network service performance and service level is not measurable in absolute terms. However, it is assessed by measuring the variations in the key service performance indicators that contribute to the service quality.
5. Sources of Information and Data Collection
5.1 Among the various aspects to consider when collecting and evaluating data are such issues as how the data is to be collected, when, why and what kind of data to be collected.
5.2 Measurements need to be carried out as near as possible to the user access point, in order to cover all aspects of QoS. In this way it is possible to detect such parameters as congestion, failures, and transmission performance related failures.
5.3 In order to supervise and assess QoS the following three main sources of information may be used:
Measurements – these could be manual observation, semi-automatic observation and automatic measurements. Measurements can be conducted by using test calls or live traffic. The modern trend is to use automatic methods because of their efficiency and minimal operating costs, continuous observation is possible, conversational privacy is ensured, and events can be recorded.
Customer interviews – These can be used to assess QoS perceived by customers on calls generally and specifically on calls recently performed. They can also be used to gauge the customers’ perception of the improvement required, and also their expectations.
Complaints and fault reports – Fault reports generated by operators or PURA represent routine basis of service or network impairment. Complaints on the other hand, represent the customers’ negative perceptions of the service profile offered and may overlap with fault reports
Complaints and fault reports must always be validated and valid ones should be analysed.
6. Measuring Methodology
6.1 There are various ways of measuring performance parameters.
6.2 Performance audits may be conducted to monitor these parameters or operators may be required to submit periodic performance reports to the regulator. Considering that PURA does not have the necessary equipment to conduct the performance audit the proposed measurement methodology is to request operators to submit periodical reports with an option of carrying out audits just to verify the figures submitted by the operators.
6.3 It however needs to be pointed out that, of the two methods suggested, the former is more proactive since the problem can be detected immediately while the latter would be based on historic data and as such any action that can or might be taken would be reactive.
6.4 The Authority should set tangible limits for the operators to achieve. BTA also should establish a penalty framework, which impose fines on operators if they fail to meet certain limits.
6.5 Publication of measurements
Measurements at the minimum must be; Important to customers (current and potential);
They must be accessible (where/how) is the information published and when [frequency and times]) and helpful (relate to things that they are most concerned about—their experiences, be brief, clear/comprehensible to customers and not contain unnecessary/extra information) to customers and fair to operators (should assist with comparisons between operators in the manner of presentation, should not lump different measurements from the same operator when comparing a single service/level of quality of service [ie separate publication for different service levels]).
• Practical for operators;
Measurements should not require more tests and calculations/reporting than are not likely to make a difference between the perceptions of customers. Measurements should be of some benefit to the operator’s operations/processes.
• Comparable between operators in the same sector;
Comparable measurements must be made. Thus in reporting, operators must present reports in formats that are similar and address:
Name of service;
The reporting area for which the measurements are taken;
The actual measurements submitted by the operator ;
An indication of any targets for the parameter and whether they have been reached or surpassed;
Explanatory notes/remarks by the licensee.
7. Selected Definitions of QoS Standards Parameters
7.1 There is a need to define quality of service standards parameters, which are measurable. The purpose of defining parameters is to make a link between definitions and their practical applications.
7.2 Quality of service parameters characterise the quality level of a certain aspect of a service being offered and ultimately the customer satisfaction with the service provided.
7.3 Quality of service depends on the network plant performance and service management by an operator. While selecting the quality of service parameters, emphasis should be given to the customers’ perception of quality. Three factors that are being considered in selecting these parameters are:
These should be expressed in terminology that a customer would easily understand, taking into account the global practice as recommended by the ITU.
The time and physical dimensions expressed should be meaningful to customers. These should be measurable, with the exception of subjective (qualitative) indicators, whose values may be determined by a survey for assessing customer perception that reflects customer satisfaction.
Performance of the network as a whole from one service access point to another should be indicated.
7.4 Fixed Telephone QoS
7.4.1 The quality of service here comprises all aspects of a connection, such as time to provide service, voice quality, echo, loss, reliability and so on. A subset of fixed telephony quality of service is grade of service, which comprises aspects of a connection relating to the capacity of a network. In circuit switched networks grade of service is the probability of one party not being able to initiate a call to another party, i.e. a call attempt blocked and lost owing to congestion. It is the responsibility of the telecommunications provider to monitor and manage the grade of service to ensure that it is maintained for every origin and destination pair.
7.5 Mobile Telephone QoS
7.5.1 Many factors affect the quality of a mobile network. There are standard metrics of quality of service to the user that can be measured to rate the quality of service. These metrics are; the coverage, accessibility and audio quality. In coverage the strength of the signal is measured using test equipment used to estimate the size of the cell. Accessibility is about determining the ability of the network to handle successful calls for a period of time. The audio quality considers monitoring a successful call for a period of time for the clarity of communication channel. All these indicators should be used by the mobile operators to rate the quality of service of a network.
7.5.2 Some of the measures/parameters that are relevant in the mobile telephone QoS include those outlined below. The list is by no means exhaustive but highlights those already being measured and some that are not presently measured in Botswana.
7.5.2.1 Call Success Rate: This refers to the number of calls established over the total number of mobile call attempts.
7.5.2.2 Call Dropout: This refers to the unintended disconnection of mobile calls by the network
7.5.2.3 Coverage Area: This is based on Signal strength and refers to the network’s ability in achieving signal strength of –100 dBm. Cellular operators will be required to provide propagation prediction plots for each GSM site.
7.5.2.4 Voice Quality: This refers to the network’s ability in achieving an acceptable level of voice quality.
7.5.2.5 Network availability: This refers to the time the network will be operational.
7.5.2.6 Restoration Time: This refers to the time it takes an operator to restore the service after a failure.
7.5.2.7 Service Activation Time: This refers the time it takes the operator to activate new customers, those who have been disconnected and roaming customers.
7.5.2.8 Service Support Performance: The ability of an organization to provide a service and assist in its utilization.
7.5.2.9 Service Operability Performance: The ability of a service to be successfully and easily operated by a user.
7.5.2.10 Service Accessibility Performance: The ability of a service to be obtained, within specified tolerances and other given conditions, when requested by the user.
7.5.2.11 Maintainability Performance: The ability of an item under stated conditions of use to be retained in or restored to a state in which it can perform a required function, when maintenance is performed under given conditions and using stated procedures and resources.
8. Performance Limits (Examples)
| Performance Parameters | Limits |
| Call success rate | Over 90% |
| Call Drop out | Below 5% |
| Coverage Area Street level In Building In Vehicle | 90% 85% 80% |
| Voice quality | Subjective - Same quality as normal telephone |
| Network Availability | Over 99% |
| Restoration Time Within 2 Hrs Within 12 Hrs Within 24 Hrs | 90% 95% 99% |
| Service Activation Time New Customers Reconnection Roaming | At least 1 working day At least 2 working days At least 3 working days |
