ARCEP publishes an assessment of fixed service QoS monitoring and a summary of the results published by carriers from July 2010 to June 2011.

Paris, 21 October 2011

As a follow-up to operators' sixth quarterly publication of their fixed line quality of service indicators on 14 October, ARCEP is publishing an assessment of the work performed to date, along with a summary of the results of the measurements taken by the operators during the period running from July 2010 to June 2011. The results that operators each published individually on their websites are therefore grouped together to encourage more widespread dissemination, and to make them easier to read. This summary provides perspective on operators' results from the past four measurement exercises. It is meant to act as a complement to operators' individual results, and not to replace them.

The QoS monitoring system allows consumers to obtain information on the quality of their current or future operator's fixed service. It has undergone a series of improvements thanks to ongoing efforts between ARCEP and the operators to establish common QoS metrics. The availability of common and certified quality of service indicators also allows operators to track their own performance over time, and so helps to improve the sector's efficiency.

ARCEP also points out that, in addition to its efficiency, an operator's sales policy, the structure of its clientele and its status with respect to access infrastructure (owner or tenant) can have an impact not only on the measurement of an indicator but also the likelihood that a customer will find herself in a situation that is measured by an indicator. Precautions - which are listed as a reminder in the ARCEP document - must therefore be taken to put the operators' results into perspective.