Emtel, the telecom and mobile operator in Mauritius, has become the first service provider to deploy Broadpeak’s nanoCDN technology, which enables the efficient delivery of live multiscreen TV over last mile networks by turning consumer device unicast requests into multicast requests into the network. Content is multicast to the home and converted back to unicast streams by on-premise client software so no changes are needed in the end-devices. The use of multicasting in order to deliver adaptive bit rate streaming content to multiscreen devices at home dramatically reduces demands on the last-mile network for popular content like live sports. Read more about nanoCDN here and here.
nanoCDN will enable Emtel to massively scale the delivery of live video streams to a wide range of devices, including PCs, smartphones, and tablets, while providing a superior quality of service to customers. MC VISION, the official broadcaster of Canal+ for Mauritius, recently introduced its myCANAL multiscreen service and this uses nanoCDN to reach viewers in Emtel homes via the telco’s ‘fiber-through-the-air’ (FTTA) network.
“Whenever there is a major sports event, such as the rugby world championship event in London, there is a dramatic increase in multiscreen video consumption,†Teddy Bhullar, CEO of Emtel, observes. “We needed a CDN solution capable of handling the peak bandwidth consumption of live events. nanoCDN enables us to deliver multicast streams via CDN, eliminating the need for expensive, bandwidth-hungry unicast streams. Thanks to nanoCDN we can deliver an exceptional live video experience to our customers, with optimal bandwidth usage, safeguarding standard Internet-based services.”
Ghislaine Tchibozo, General Manager at MC VISION, says it was a key requirement to manage and optimize the viewer experience on the myCANAL service. “Working with Emtel and Broadpeak, we can provide viewers with a superior live entertainment experience on every screen, Tchibozo says.
nanoCDN technology relies on standard DOCSIS 3.0 and DSL/fiber home broadband gateways. Running Broadpeak technology, the Technicolor TC7200 broadband cable modems at Emtel can receive and translate the multicast streams into unicast sessions for delivery to individual devices across the residential environment. This multicast-to-unicast process allows Emtel to save network bandwidth, enabling a fast Internet connection as well as delivery of high-quality live ABR video streams to any standard device within the home, Broadpeak explains.
Utilizing multicast and Broadpeak’s nanoCDN technology, Emtel can deliver thousands of simultaneous streams using only a few megabits over the network, the vendor adds. “Using nanoCDN over fibre-to-the-air is a truly innovative application that sets the benchmark for saving bandwidth while also meeting demand for live multiscreen content. As other telecom and cable operators around the world look to take advantage of network multicast technology, this project provides them with a great real-world deployment,” says Jacques Le Mancq, CEO at Broadpeak.
