Tektronix Communications has introduced Zoey, an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system that allows VoIP, wireless and analog phone users to test and diagnose the quality of their service at any time, effectively enabling the customer to have control over their own Quality of Experience (QoE). Integrating Zoey's IVR system with a service provider's existing customer care system will improve Mean Time To Repair (MTTR) and customer satisfaction.

Legacy IP networks were never designed to meet the demands of real-time services, such as voice, which has stringent packet requirements for network delay, jitter and packet loss, while addressing analog-audio concerns such as echo, noise, clipping and voice quality. This challenge, combined with increased customer demand for higher QoE, is a primary concern for service providers. Service providers often receive multiple customer care calls after a self-service installation due to voice-quality issues, which can ultimately lead to increased customer support costs and customer churn. This creates an increased need for service quality management tools that are able to detect quality issues of VoIP traffic and enable service providers to monitor call quality on these packet-switched networks, proactively eliminating bottlenecks and improving voice quality.

The customer experience is enhanced by embedding Zoey as a service management tool as part of the user self-installation process or the provider's customer care system. Zoey provides VoIP, wireless and PSTN phone users with an interactive test system that can diagnose issues by guiding users through a series of tests designed for common line problems such as caller ID, echo, noise, voice quality, DTMF and more. Once line quality issues are measured, the user is given a verbal report at the end of the test and details of the test results can be retrieved from a back-end customer care system, if provisioned. If Zoey detects that the voice service is faulty, the user is automatically transferred to a customer care agent to address the issue.

In addition to the benefits provided to self-install VoIP phone users, field technicians can use Zoey as a maintenance tool to quickly test service deployments. Zoey can help ensure technicians get the job completed correctly and on-time. Zoey can also be utilized in conjunction with Tektronix Communications' Loopback and responder testing that uses intelligent end devices such as the PowerProbe 30, part of the world's most comprehensive VoIP and analog PSTN test solution for service delivery testing and troubleshooting.

"Having the right test tool for the job is essential," said Mark Driedger, vice president and general manager, Network Management, Tektronix Communications. "Zoey provides end-to-end visibility in mixed circuit and packet environments and is an ideal tool that will support end-users and reduce the amount of time spent on the line with customer call centers."