Streaming media network streams are modified using a sequence field with the IP layer 3 protocol compatible with already deployed IP switching systems except as noted for device and system testing and operational monitoring which can be used to detect the loss or out of order delivery of packets belonging to a stream. This approach can also provide the ability to numerically characterize the loss in terms of total loss, loss burst size, and loss frequency. By utilizing the bit locations of the IP-defined datagram Identification (ID) field and a unique numerical sequence, loss and out of order delivery may be tracked while avoiding the overhead and complexity associated with added upper layer protocols while gaining other key advantages such as in-situ marking of stream attributes.