Video monitoring technology provider, Volicon, has launched an Interactive Services Module (ISM) for the Observer RPM (Remote Program Manager), its post set-top box video service assurance solution for cable, IPTV, mobile and satellite service providers. According to the company, the new ISM extends the Observer RPM with capabilities that allow operators to test the quality of their on-demand and interactive TV content and advertising alongside their linear TV offerings. "As interactive television offerings become more sophisticated and prevalent, viewers are demanding the same quality levels they've come to expect from linear broadcast programs, which is putting pressure on operators to continuously monitor these services," Andrew Sachs, Volicon's senior director of marketing, said in a prepared statement. "The ISM is the ideal complement to the Observer RPM for operators that are deploying IPTV, EBIF/ETV, or tru2way interactive and on-demand video services. By providing automated, periodic interactive service verification along with a 24x7 log, operators can assure the availability of and customer experience with these new critical services."

According to Volicon, the Observer RPM provides operators with a post-set-top box access point for monitoring and troubleshooting video content via powerful analytics, IR command scripting, integration with transport stream analyzers, and full frame rate/resolution continuous recording. It says that the ISM adds advanced decision making logic, scripting and graphical pattern matching that enable monitoring of network/station bugs, interactive media guides, direct commerce and voting/polling applications, and words and graphics in interactive menus, as well as detection and activation of telescoping advertising bugs. Users can write simple scripts that enable testing of the most complex interactive or on-demand services, the company claims.