EE-TV-Service-Kit
Broadband ISP and mobile operator EE has today revealed the results from last year’s trial delivery of TV content via a new Content Delivery Network (CDN) technology, which reflects BT’s effort to integrate their “world’s first” MAUD (Multicast-Assisted Unicast Delivery) solution into Edgio’s CDN.
Most telecoms operators use sophisticated CDNs and related systems to help manage network load, which caches popular internet content closer in the network to end-users (i.e. improves performance without adding network strain). Such systems also help to lower the provider’s impact on external links and keep bandwidth costs down.
Similarly, BT first started talking about their new IP transmission technology, called MAUD, back in December 2023 (here). Unlike traditional “unicast” delivery methods, where each broadband connected viewer watches the action via a dedicated, personal internet stream, MAUD uses “multicast” to group those single streams into one shared one, directing it to those that want to watch the action.
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MAUD’s integration is also made completely transparent to the player application, which means content service providers (e.g. BBC, Netflix etc.) don’t need to modify their customer apps to take advantage of it (saving time and money). BT previously claimed that its MAUD technology uses up to 50% less bandwidth during peak events and reduces energy usage through the use of fewer caches, but this wasn’t put to the test until EE began their first live trial in August 2024 (here).
According to Chris Bramley, BT’s MD of NAS and Architecture (Networks), they’ve been “delighted with the results” from their first trial (blog). The test is said to have shown that, during peak times on the network, the MAUD solution converted over 60% of traffic from unicast delivery to multicast delivery.
Chris Bramley said:
“The trial used BBC Two content on EE’s set-top box TV platform in the live network – taking the technology from proof of concept to real-world. The trial has shown that during peak times on the network, the MAUD solution has converted over 60 percent of traffic from unicast delivery to multicast delivery. In simpler terms, the trial has demonstrated MAUD’s ability to flatten peaks of network traffic, by switching to multicast delivery, which is a more efficient way of delivering content over the internet.
Moving to the next stage of the trial, BT Group is looking to broaden the scope to include more channels, build out the full feature set, as well as to test the addition of dynamic ad insertion, which would enable a seamless, personalised ad experience for viewers. As seen during the recent Super-Bowl, there is high demand for ad space for live sports with CEO of Fox, Lachlan Murdoch, commenting that ‘ad space had sold out at record pricing’.
As millions look forward to watching the next live event, we’ll continue to innovate and collaborate with content and application providers, on technologies such as MAUD, to make sure that we collectively deliver the best experiences for our shared customers.”
Admittedly, from the consumer’s perspective, this is one of those seamless changes where if it’s working correctly then you probably won’t even notice it’s there. On the other hand, anything that helps to reduce network congestion is likely to result in more customers receiving higher quality streams.