White Paper
Improving Audio Quality In VoIP Conferencing Services
Audio conferencing services based on circuitswitched networks and audio bridging equipment have provided hosted conferencing users with a benchmark for pricing and quality in voice communications. While next generation networks based on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology introduce economic benefits with new feature capabilities for conferencing service providers (CSPs), they also present new technical challenges in maintaining acceptable voice quality. Delivering good voice quality is an important requirement in any VoIP conferencing system, as poor voice quality will increase the costs associated with customer churn, while impacting the bottom line by reducing revenue growth prospects.
Voice Quality Enhancement (VQE) encompasses an integrated set of features designed to overcome common audio quality problems in VoIP conferencing services, including noise, packet loss and echo. A comprehensive VQE solution also measures VoIP quality metrics, which are used in ongoing voice quality measurement associated with service level agreements.
Many features inherent in a VQE solution require sophisticated digital signal processing algorithms. The rapid, scalable execution of these algorithms dictates a product specifically designed for real-time IP packet processing. Fortunately, in a next-generation VoIP audio conferencing architecture, a network element already exists with carrier-class real-time IP packet processing power. And that network element is the IP media server.
This whitepaper describes an innovative approach towards VoIP audio quality improvements in VoIP conferencing applications where VQE capabilities are integrated into the IP media server itself. By performing both voice quality enhancement and VoIP media processing in the same network element, CSPs and their application developers can realize economic and technical benefits in their delivery of multi-party VoIP conferencing services with superior audio quality.
