A Generalized Approach to Predict the Availability of IPTV Services in Vehicular Networks Using an Analytical Model

摘要

Currently, an increasing number of vehicles are getting equipped with components which offer the possibility of an Internet access with low expenditure. Therefore, entertainment services in VANETs are becoming more and more important. An interesting class of entertainment services comprises IP television (IPTV) services and, therefore, studies regarding the quality of experience (QoE) for IPTV in VANETs are becoming increasingly relevant. Such QoE analyses also constitute the main goal of this paper where we focus on QoE in terms of availability of IPTV services. Up to now, studies of IPTV service availability in VANETs have primarily been executed based on simulation models. In this paper, we make use of analytical models to predict availability of IPTV for VANET scenarios. For this purpose, we have elaborated an analytical model of rather low complexity which, nevertheless, is rather realistic as we will show by means of comprehensive validation studies. In addition, we propose a general proceeding which makes use of our analytical model and can be applied as a straight-forward approach to predict the availability of IPTV services in a flexible and efficient manner. Case studies demonstrate how our analytical model can be applied by a provider of IPTV services, offered via VANETs, in order to satisfy QoE requirements regarding the service availability as given by the IPTV users.