Service control switching start-up Sandvine Inc. announced a three-year global purchase agreement yesterday with Liberty Media Corporation and Liberty Media International. Together, the Liberty companies have investments in international cable properties serving more than 25 million homes passed. Liberty's largest affiliate is UnitedGlobalCom Inc. (UGC), Europe's biggest cable operator. In a statement, UGC CTO Sudhir Ispahani said the deal will offer 'greater granularity into analyzing data flows on our networks," noting that 'as our product and services increase in complexity, and network quality and utilization becomes more critical, we will require more sophisticated tools to better manage our business." Service control solutions like Sandvine's enable broadband providers to analyze and control IP traffic on a per subscriber or application basis. With these tools, broadband providers can better manage network capacity, as well as prioritize applications or guarantee service levels.