Multicast in Third-Generation Mobile Networks: Services, Mechanisms and Performance

In this book, the authors describe how to perform multicast, the one-to-many delivery of data to a group of destinations, in third-generation mobile networks.

The authors provide an overview of the services that can be realized with multicast in third-generation networks, describe the mechanisms required to support these services and highlight the performance of several multicast mechanisms. The focus of this book is on multicast in UMTS and CDMA2000 networks, the dominant third-generation network standards. In addition to describing the standards for multicast, the authors also provide extensive performance results of multicast in third-generation networks.

Key Features:

•Provides an in-depth review of the fundamentals of multicast

•Describes in detail the MBMS and BCMCS standards for multicast in UMTS and CDMA2000 networks, respectively

•Provides a comprehensive overview of the services that can be realized with multicast in third-generation networks

•Highlights the performance of multicast in third-generation networks

•Investigates how multicast can be achieved in heterogeneous networks consisting of cellular and broadcast networks

This book is an invaluable resource for professional engineers and researchers working in the area of third-generation networks. Postgraduate and graduate students on networking and communications courses will also find this book an insightful and valuable reference.

Robert Ruemmler currently works for Accenture AG, Switzerland as a consultant for leading Swiss banks. Robert holds a PhD from King's College London, United Kingdom (2005, Thesis: On the Distribution of Software to End-User Terminals in Third-Generation Mobile Networks). His research interests include Multicast in third-generation networks, IP multicast, software download to the mobile terminals, and software-defined radio. He has been actively collaborating with leading companies in mobile communications industry as part of European Commission-sponsored research projects.