The ability to measure monitor and control the service experienced by network traffic, is becoming of increasing importance due to the widespread IP connectivity and hence the increased need for service management, as well as due to the candidacy of the Internet to provide a global telecommunications infrastructure, supporting a range of different services and traffic with assured QoS. Current measurement techniques face difficulties in assessing the actual (real) performance and service offered by the underlying infrastructure either due to their limited, single-point monitoring nature, or due to their liability in producing misleading results, coming from measuring special-purpose (synthetic) traffic. The proposed hybrid approach for conducting network measurements tries to overcome the limitations imposed by current architectures. We theoretically argue and practically evaluate that we can provide for accurate, network service measurements based on the latest, extendable protocol and systems deployment. By defining and using IPv6-based, in-line measurements we aim at revealing the true properties of Internet traffic and stress their particular applicability for next generation networks as well as for mobile wireless environments, where resource are in shortage.