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An Efficient Mechanism for UMTS Multicast Routing

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Abstract

In this paper, we present a novel scheme for the multicast transmission of data over Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) networks. Apart from the normal multicast transmission over UMTS, we consider the handling of exceptional cases caused by user mobility scenarios. The proposed scheme is in accordance with the current specifications of the Multimedia Multicast/Broadcast Service (MBMS) defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and introduces minor modifications in the UMTS architecture and the mobility management mechanisms. The proposed scheme is implemented as an ns-2 network simulator module. The performance of the proposed scheme is validated and analyzed through ns-2 simulation experiments. This new module can be employed to investigate various aspects of UMTS multicast. Furthermore, in order to further highlight the contribution of our mechanism, we have implemented two multicast congestion control mechanisms for UMTS and we have measured their performance for MBMS transmissions.

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Abbreviations

BM-SC:

Broadcast Multicast-Service Center

CN:

Core Network

GGSN:

Gateway GSN

GPRS:

General Packet Radio Service

GSN:

GPRS Support Node

HLR:

Home Location Register

MBMS:

Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service

PDN:

Packet Data Networks

RNC:

Radio Network Controller

RNS:

Radio Network Subsystem

SGSN:

Serving GSN

UE:

User Equipment

UTRAN:

UMTS Terrestrial Radio-Access Network

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Academic Computer Technology Institute, N. Kazantzaki, GR-26500, Patras, Greece

    Christos Bouras

  2. Computer Engineering and Informatics Department, University of Patras, GR-26500, Patras, Greece

    Antonios Alexiou, Christos Bouras & Andreas Papazois

Authors
  1. Antonios Alexiou
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  2. Christos Bouras
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  3. Andreas Papazois
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Correspondence to Christos Bouras.

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Alexiou, A., Bouras, C. & Papazois, A. An Efficient Mechanism for UMTS Multicast Routing. Mobile Netw Appl 15, 802–815 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11036-009-0207-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11036-009-0207-0

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