Unsupported broadcast transmission

Abstract

A method, computer program product and apparatus are provided for transmitting information regarding support of broadcast transmissions in a requested multicast and broadcast service (MBS) service area. An access and mobility function (AMF), an application function (AF), a network repository function (NRF), a network open function (NEF), a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF), or a network repository function (NRF) may transmit or receive information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmissions in a requested MBS service area.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Example embodiments relate generally to communication systems, and more particularly, but not limited to, to apparatus, methods, and computer programs for communication systems. Background Art

[0002] A communication system can be considered as a facility that enables communication between two or more communication devices or provides access to a data network for a communication device. A communication system may operate in accordance with standards provided by 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) or ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute). An example of a standard is the so-called 5G (fifth generation) standard provided by 3GPP. The previous 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) version of the fifth generation core network (5GC) has defined some standards related to multicast and broadcast services (MBS). Summary of the invention

[0003] 3GPP provides support for multicast and broadcast services (MBS) to facilitate the simultaneous transmission of data to multiple receiving devices, such as user equipment (UE). In at least some versions of 3GPP, the session of the multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) assigned to an MBS session cannot be changed while the session is in progress. When an application function (AF) requests an MBS service area that is not covered by a single MB-SMF service area, an error condition may occur. Additionally, for MBS broadcast, if certain radio access network (RAN) nodes within the MBS service area do not support the MBS broadcast service, the MBS service area may not be supported. This is different from the MBS multicast service, which has defined a fallback mechanism to use "separate delivery" towards RAN nodes that do not support MBS multicast. Therefore, due to the lack of RAN node restrictions, MBS broadcast support is not expected to be reflected in the MB-SMF service areas registered in the network repository function (NRF).

[0004] 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 23.247 describes broadcast MBS session start, broadcast MBS session delivery status indication, and procedures for group message delivery via MBS broadcast.

[0005] However, some RAN nodes may not support the fifth generation MBS (5MBS) and / or MBS broadcast service, and therefore, such information is not transparent to or provided to the AF for use in constructing the MBS broadcast service area. Without such information, the AF cannot deliver the broadcast service to the user equipment (UE) located in the sub-area and / or cell where the RAN node does not support the 5MBS broadcast service. In other words, without such information, the AF cannot construct an appropriate MBS broadcast service area, which in turn causes the UE to be unable to receive the broadcast service.

[0006] To address at least some of the above problems, according to the example embodiments disclosed herein, the AF, which is the data source of 5MBS broadcast data, can be informed of cells that do not support MBS broadcast, so that the AF can deliver the data to UEs residing in these cells via alternative methods (such as but not limited to unicast transmission). This is particularly applicable to public safety, where the AF knows the location of the UE. Additionally or alternatively, the AF can use this information to decide to use MBS multicast instead of MBS broadcast transmission.

[0007] Certain example embodiments disclosed herein may facilitate providing such information to the AF in a variety of ways. When establishing an MBS multicast session, the AF may subscribe at the MB-SMF to notifications about sub-areas in a requested MBS service area that support and / or do not support MBS broadcast transmissions, and / or notifications about whether MBS broadcast transmissions are supported and / or not supported in the entire requested MBS service area.

[0008] As described herein, the requested portion, sub-area, and / or area of ​​the service area may be indicated, defined, received, stored, etc., in a variety of ways, including using or referencing any data or information identifying any number of cells and / or tracking areas (TAs) of the MBS service area. For example, the sub-area or area may be indicated by a cell identifier, a list of cell identifiers, a tracking area identifier (TAI), and / or a tracking area code (TAC). In this regard, the sub-area or area may be indicated, defined, received, and / or stored as a collection of any of the above identification information, such as, but not limited to, a cell identifier, a tracking area identifier, etc.

[0009] Based on the subscription, when the MB-SMF sends a request to the Application Management Function (AMF) for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session, the MB-SMF may include the following indications: the request is to be informed of the sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that support and / or do not support MBS broadcast transmissions, and / or whether MBS broadcast transmissions are supported and / or not supported in the entire requested MBS service area.

[0010] When the AMF processes a request from the MB-SMF to initiate an MBS broadcast session within a service area or to update an MBS session with an enlarged / changed service area, the AMF checks whether the NG-RAN nodes handling the part or sub-area of ​​the service area for the MBS session controlled by the AMF support MBS broadcast.

[0011] If one or more sub-areas in the service area controlled by the AMF are handled by a NG-RAN node that does not support 5MBS, the AMF informs the MB-SMF about the sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that support and / or do not support MBS broadcast transmission, and / or whether the entire requested MBS service area supports and / or does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0012] According to certain embodiments disclosed herein, the MB-SMF checks the replies from the AMFs it contacts to initiate or update an MBS broadcast session, and if any AMF indicates that the MBS broadcast session is not supported in a sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area, it combines the areas that support and / or do not support the MBS broadcast service indicated by different AMFs. The AMF sends a notification to the AF and / or the MB-SMF about the sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that support and / or do not support MBS broadcast transmission, and / or whether the entire requested MBS service area supports and / or does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0013] Thus, upon receiving the notification, the AMF may identify UEs subscribed to the MBS session and residing in a portion or sub-area of ​​the MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast, and send data related to the MBS session to these UEs via an alternative method (e.g., but not limited to, unicast delivery). According to certain embodiments, the AF may terminate the MBS broadcast session and establish an MBS multicast session in place of the MBS broadcast session.

[0014] According to certain embodiments, the NEF / MBSF and / or MB-SMF compares the MBS service area received in the MBS session creation or modification request for the MBS broadcast session from the AF with the configuration information of the area supporting MBS broadcast in the RAN. If the MBS service area includes one or more sub-areas that do not support MBS broadcast, the NEF / MBSF and / or MB-SMF indicates the following in a reply to the MBS session creation or modification request: information about sub-areas that support and / or do not support MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS service area, and / or whether MBS broadcast transmission is supported and / or not supported in the entire requested MBS service area.

[0015] The reply may be an error response rejecting the MBS session creation or modification and indicating that the reason for the rejection is that a part or sub-area of ​​the service area does not support MBS broadcasting, or an acceptance of the MBS session creation or modification request.

[0016] In some embodiments, the MB-SMF stores information about the areas served by the MB-SMF that support MBS broadcast in its configuration file at the NRF, and the NEF / MBSF retrieves this information and uses it during MBS broadcast session creation to select the MB-SMF that serves the requested MBS service area and to check whether the requested MBS service area supports MBS broadcast.

[0017] When the reply is received, the AF may identify the UEs that subscribe to the MBS session and are located in a portion or sub-area of ​​the MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast, and send data related to the MBS session to these UEs via unicast delivery. Alternatively, the AF may terminate the MBS broadcast session and establish an MBS multicast session to replace the MBS broadcast session. If the reply is a rejection, the AF may also send a new MBS session creation or modification request and reduce the service area to a portion or sub-area that supports MBS broadcast.

[0018] A device is provided, comprising at least one processor and at least one memory, the memory comprising instructions for an access and mobility management function (AMF), wherein when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor, the device is caused to perform at least the following: determine that multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​a requested MBS service area; and in response to the determination, provide a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) with at least one of the following: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0019] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the apparatus is further caused to receive at least an MBS session start request from an MB-SMF, the MBS session start request comprising: a request for information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmission in an MBS service area, wherein determining and providing are performed in response to the request.

[0020] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the device is also caused to perform at least the following: receive an MBS capability indicator from a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) node; and store the MBS capability indicator in association with at least one of the following: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determination is based at least on the MBS capability indicator.

[0021] According to certain embodiments, determining includes sending a request to a NG-RAN node to start an MBS broadcast transmission or establish a broadcast context; receiving a response to the request, the response including an error indicating that at least one of the MBS broadcast transmission or the establishment of the broadcast context is not supported; and storing the indication that the MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node.

[0022] The determination includes: receiving one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission from an operation, administration, and maintenance (OAM) system, the one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission indicating at least one of the following: whether the NG-RAN node supports MBS broadcast transmission, an area where MBS broadcast transmission is supported, an area where broadcast transmission is not supported, or information about an area served by the NG-RAN node; and storing the one or more configurations, wherein the determination is based at least on the one or more configurations.

[0023] The determination may also include comparing, based on one or more stored configurations for MBS broadcast transmission, areas served by one or more NG-RAN nodes associated with the requested MBS service area; and determining whether MBS broadcast transmission is supported by the one or more NG-RAN nodes.

[0024] According to certain embodiments, the determination further includes: determining a first group of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to NG-RAN node service cells of the requested MBS service area; deriving a second group of NG-RAN node IDs, the second group of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to at least one of the following: NG-RAN nodes in the first group that do not support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information, or NG-RAN nodes in the first group that support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information; and performing at least one of the following: determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission from the second group of NG-RAN nodes that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; or determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes that support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0025] According to certain embodiments, the determination also includes performing at least one of the following: determining the NG-RAN node ID of the first group by obtaining a predetermined number of leftmost bits of the cell IDs of the cells included in the requested MBS service area; determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission by identifying a cell whose cell ID has a predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second group of NG-RAN node IDs; or determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission by identifying a cell whose cell ID has a predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second group of NG-RAN node IDs.

[0026] The present invention provides a method for an access and mobility management function (AMF), the method comprising: determining that a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​a requested MBS service area; and in response to the determination, providing a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) with at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0027] The method may further include receiving an MBS session start request from the MB-SMF, the MBS session start request including a request for information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area, wherein the determining and the providing are performed in response to the request.

[0028] The method also includes receiving an MBS capability indicator from a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) node; and storing the MBS capability indicator in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determination is based at least on the MBS capability indicator.

[0029] The present invention provides a computer program product, comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which includes one or more sequences of one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the device to perform at least one of the following operations: determine that multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​a requested MBS service area; and in response to the determination, provide a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) with at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0030] The computer-executable program code instructions also include program code instructions for receiving an MBS session start request from the MB-SMF, the MBS session start request including a request for information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmissions in the MBS service area, wherein the determining and providing are performed in response to the request.

[0031] The computer-executable program code instructions also include program code instructions for: receiving an MBS capability indicator from a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) node; and storing the MBS capability indicator in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determination is based at least on the MBS capability indicator.

[0032] A device comprising: a device for determining that a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​a requested MBS service area; and a device for providing at least one of the following to a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) in response to the determination: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0033] The apparatus further comprises means for receiving an MBS session start request from an MB-SMF, the MBS session start request comprising: a request for information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmission in an MBS service area, wherein the determining and providing are performed in response to the request. The apparatus further comprises means for receiving an MBS capability indicator from a Next Generation Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) node, and means for storing the MBS capability indicator in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including an area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determining is based at least on the MBS capability indicator. The means for determining further comprises: means for sending a request to the NG-RAN node to start MBS broadcast transmission or to establish a broadcast context; means for receiving a response to the request, the response comprising an error indicating that at least one of the MBS broadcast transmission or the establishment of the broadcast context is not supported; and means for storing an indication that the MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including an area served by the NG-RAN node.

[0034] The device for determining may also include a device for receiving one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission from an operation, administration, and maintenance (OAM) system, the one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission indicating at least one of the following: whether the NG-RAN node supports MBS broadcast transmission, an area where MBS broadcast transmission is supported, an area where broadcast transmission is not supported, or information about an area served by the NG-RAN node; and a device for storing the one or more configurations, wherein the determination is based at least on the one or more configurations.

[0035] The means for determining also includes means for comparing areas served by one or more NG-RAN nodes associated with the requested MBS service area based on one or more stored configurations for MBS broadcast transmissions, and means for determining whether MBS broadcast transmissions are supported by the one or more NG-RAN nodes.

[0036] The apparatus for determining also includes: an apparatus for determining a first group of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to NG-RAN node service cells of the requested MBS service area; an apparatus for deriving a second group of NG-RAN node IDs, the second group of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to at least one of the following: NG-RAN nodes in the first group that do not support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information, or NG-RAN nodes in the first group that support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information; and an apparatus for performing at least one of the following: determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; or determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes that support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0037] The apparatus for determining further includes: an apparatus for determining a first group of NG-RAN node IDs by acquiring a predetermined number of leftmost bits of cell IDs of cells included in the requested MBS service area; an apparatus for determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission by identifying a cell whose cell ID has a predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second group of NG-RAN node IDs; or an apparatus for determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission by identifying a cell whose cell ID has a predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second group of NG-RAN node IDs.

[0038] Provided is an apparatus, comprising at least one processor, at least one memory, the memory comprising instructions for an application function (AF), which, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the apparatus to perform at least the following: sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or a request for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of the following: a network exposure function (NEF), a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), the request comprising a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session, receiving a message indicating at least one of the following: the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, In at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, receive (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that desires to receive an MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of at least one UE, identify one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE, and transmit data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication. The data transmitted via unicast communication is transmitted as MBS data in the one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS sub-area that supports MBS broadcast transmission.

[0039] According to certain embodiments, based on the received message, the device performs at least one of the following operations: identifying one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and sending data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication; sending an MBS broadcast session creation request, wherein the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; terminating an MBS broadcast session associated with one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; sending an MBS broadcast session update request, wherein the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; or initiating an MBS multicast session.

[0040] The received message may be a response to a request for creating or updating an MBS broadcast session sent from at least one of the NEF, MB-SMF, or MBSF.

[0041] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the apparatus is further caused to at least send an MBS broadcast session creation request, wherein the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast.

[0042] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the apparatus is further caused to terminate at least an MBS broadcast session associated with one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0043] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the apparatus is further caused to at least send an MBS broadcast session update request, wherein the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast.

[0044] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the apparatus is further caused to initiate at least a multicast session including a multicast service area including at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0045] A method is provided, comprising sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or a request for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of: a network exposure function (NEF), a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), the request including a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session; receiving a message indicating at least one of: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area where MBS broadcast transmission is supported, or at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area where MBS broadcast transmission is not supported, receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that desires to receive the MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of the at least one UE, identifying one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area where MBS broadcast transmission is not supported based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE, and sending data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication. The data transmitted via unicast communication is transmitted as MBS data in one or more sub-areas supporting MBS broadcast transmission among the requested MBS sub-areas.

[0046] A computer program product, comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the storage medium comprising one or more sequences of one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors, cause an apparatus to perform at least one of the following: sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or a request for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of the following: a network opening function (NEF), a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), the request including a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session; receiving a message indicating at least one of the following: in the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, does not support MBS broadcast transmission in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area, does not support MBS broadcast transmission in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area, supports MBS broadcast transmission in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area, or does not support MBS broadcast transmission in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area, receives (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that expects to receive an MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of at least one UE, identifies one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE, and sends data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication.

[0047] The data transmitted via unicast communication is transmitted as MBS data in one or more sub-areas supporting MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS sub-areas. The received message is a notification message; and wherein the computer executable program code instructions further include program code instructions for subscribing to support information about MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area.

[0048] An apparatus is provided, comprising: an apparatus for: sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or a request for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of: a network opening function (NEF), a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF), or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, the request including a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session; an apparatus for: receiving a message indicating at least one of: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire requested MBS service area, MBS is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area, broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; an apparatus for: receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that expects to receive an MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of at least one UE, identifying one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission based on the received message and the UE location of at least one UE, and an apparatus for sending data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication.

[0049] Provided is an apparatus, comprising at least one processor, at least one memory, the memory comprising instructions for a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF), which when executed by the at least one processor causes the apparatus to at least perform the following operations: receiving a request from at least one of a network repository function (NRF), a network open function (NEF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF) to create or update a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or to allocate an MBS session identifier, the request comprising a requested MBS service area; determining, at least one of which is determining that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; and sending a response to at least one of the network repository function NRF, the network open function NEF, or the multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, the response indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission. The response is sent in response to the request for creating or updating the MBS broadcast session. The instructions, when executed by at least one processor, also cause the device to perform at least any one of the following operations: sending a request for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session to an access and mobility management function (AMF), the request including a second requested MBS service area, wherein the second requested MBS service area includes the requested MBS service area or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area; receiving a message from the AMF indicating at least one of the following: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and using the message received from the AMF to determine the sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0050] An apparatus according to any one of claims 65-68, wherein when the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the apparatus is further caused to receive at least one configuration regarding: an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission or an area not supporting MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

[0051] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the device is also caused to at least request a network resource function (NRF) to store at least one of the following in the configuration file information of the device: information about an area served by the device that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the device that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

[0052] A method is provided, including receiving a request from at least one of a network repository function (NRF), a network exposure function (NEF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF) to create or update a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or to allocate an MBS session identifier, the request including a requested MBS service area; determining, at least one of which is determining that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; and sending a response to at least one of the network repository function (NRF), the network exposure function (NEF), or the multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), the response indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission. The response is sent in response to the request to create or update the MBS broadcast session.

[0053] The method may also include: sending a request for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session to an access and mobility management function (AMF), the request including a second requested MBS service area, wherein the second requested MBS service area includes the requested MBS service area or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area; receiving a message from the AMF indicating at least one of the following: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and using the message received from the AMF to determine the sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0054] The method may further include receiving a configuration regarding at least one of: an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission or an area not supporting MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

[0055] The method may also include requesting a network resource function (NRF) to store at least one of the following in the configuration file information of the device: information about an area served by the device that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the device that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

[0056] A computer program product comprises at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which includes one or more sequences of one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors, cause a device to perform at least one of the following: receive a request from at least one of a network repository function NRF, a network open function NEF, or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF to create or update a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, or to allocate an MBS session identifier, the request including a requested MBS service area; determine, at least one of which is to determine that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area; and send a response to at least one of the network repository function NRF, the network open function NEF, or the multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, the response indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0057] The response is sent in response to the request for creating or updating the MBS broadcast session. The computer-executable program code instructions also include program code instructions for sending a request for initiating or updating the MBS broadcast session to an access and mobility management function AMF, the request including a second requested MBS service area, wherein the second requested MBS service area includes the requested MBS service area or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area, receiving a message from the AMF indicating at least one of the following: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and

[0058] The message received from the AMF is used to determine the sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0059] The computer executable program code instructions also include program code instructions for performing the following: receiving a configuration regarding at least one of: an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission or an area not supporting MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

[0060] The computer executable program code instructions also include program code instructions for performing the following: requesting the network resource function NRF to store at least one of the following in the configuration file information of the device: information about the area served by the device that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the device that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

[0061] A device is provided, having a device for: receiving a request from at least one of a network repository function (NRF), a network exposure function (NEF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF) to create or update a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or to allocate an MBS session identifier, the request including a requested MBS service area; a device for: determining, at least one of which is determining that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area; and a device for: sending a response to at least one of the network repository function NRF, the network exposure function NEF, or the multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, the response indicating at least one of: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0062] A device is provided, comprising at least one processor and at least one memory, wherein the memory comprises instructions for at least one of a network opening function (NEF) or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), which, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the device to perform at least the following: receiving a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session from an application function (AF), the request comprising a requested MBS service area; determining that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and sending a response to the AF indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0063] The response is sent in response to a request to create or update an MBS broadcast session.

[0064] When the instructions are executed by at least one processor, the device is also caused to perform at least the following: retrieve profile information of at least one multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) from a network repository function (NRF), the profile information including at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination is based on the retrieved profile information.

[0065] A method is provided, comprising: receiving a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session from an application function (AF), the request including a requested MBS service area; determining that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and sending a response to the AF indicating at least one of: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0066] The present invention provides a computer program product, comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which includes one or more sequences of one or more instructions. When the instructions are executed by one or more processors, the device performs at least one of the following operations: receiving a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session from an application function (AF), the request including a requested MBS service area; determining that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and sending a response to the AF indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0067] The response is sent in response to a request to create or update an MBS broadcast session.

[0068] The present invention provides a device, which has a device for receiving a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session from an application function AF, the request including a requested MBS service area; a device for determining that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and a device for sending a response to the AF indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0069] A device is provided, comprising at least one processor and at least one memory, the memory comprising instructions for at least one of network repository functions (NRFs), which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the device to at least perform the following operations: receive a request for storing at least one of the following in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; store profile information, the profile information comprising at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; receive a request for retrieving profile information related to the MB-SMF; and provide profile information, the profile information comprising at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0070] A method is provided, comprising: receiving a request for storing at least one of the following in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; storing profile information, the profile information including at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; receiving a request for retrieving profile information related to the MB-SMF; and providing profile information, the profile information including at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0071] A computer program product is provided, comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the storage medium including one or more sequences of one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors, cause an apparatus to perform at least one of the following: receiving a request to store at least one of the following in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF); receiving a request to store at least one of the following in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF: information about areas served by the MB-SMF that support MBS broadcast transmission, or information about areas served by the MB-SMF that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; storing profile information, the profile information including at least one of the following: information about areas served by the MB-SMF that support MBS broadcast transmission, or information about areas served by the MB-SMF that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; receiving a request to retrieve profile information related to the MB-SMF; and providing profile information, the profile information including at least one of the following: information about areas served by the MB-SMF that support MBS broadcast transmission, or information about areas served by the MB-SMF that do not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0072] A device is provided, comprising: receiving a request for storing at least one of the following in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; storing profile information, the profile information including at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; receiving a request for retrieving profile information related to the MB-SMF; and providing profile information, the profile information including at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0073] The above content of the invention is only used to summarize some example embodiments of the present disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding of certain aspects of the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be understood that the above example embodiments are only examples and should not be interpreted as narrowing the scope or spirit of the present disclosure in any way. It should be understood that the scope of the present disclosure covers many potential embodiments, some of which will be described below in addition to the embodiments summarized here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0074] Having generally described certain exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure above, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, in which:

[0075] Figure 1 is a block diagram of an apparatus that may be specifically configured according to certain example embodiments;

[0076] Figure 2A is a block diagram of a mobile network according to an example embodiment;

[0077] Figure 2B is an illustration according to some example embodiments Figure 2A A block diagram of the network functions and interfaces of a mobile network;

[0078] Figures 3 to 5 is a diagram of a procedure for requesting an MBS broadcast session according to certain example embodiments;

[0079] Figure 6 illustrates operations that may be performed by an access and mobility function (AMF) according to certain example embodiments;

[0080] Figure 7 illustrates operations that may be performed by an application function (AF) according to certain example embodiments;

[0081] Figure 8 illustrates operations that may be performed by a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) according to certain example embodiments;

[0082] Fig. 9 operations that may be performed by at least one of a network opening function (NEF) or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF) according to certain example embodiments are shown; and

[0083] Fig.10 Operations that may be performed by a network repository function (NRF) according to certain example embodiments are illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0084] Some embodiments of the present disclosure will be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all, embodiments of the present disclosure are shown. In fact, the various embodiments of the present disclosure may be embodied in a variety of different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described herein; on the contrary, these embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure meets applicable legal requirements. The same figure numbers always represent the same elements. As used herein, the terms "data", "content", "information" and similar terms may be used interchangeably to refer to data that can be transmitted, received and / or stored in accordance with certain embodiments of the present disclosure. Therefore, the use of any such terms should not be construed as limiting the spirit and scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0085] Additionally, as used herein, the term "circuitry" refers to (a) a pure hardware circuit implementation (e.g., an implementation in analog circuits and / or digital circuits); (b) a combination of a circuit and a computer program product, including software and / or firmware instructions stored on one or more computer-readable memories, which act together to cause the device to perform one or more functions described herein; and (c) a circuit, such as a microprocessor or a portion of a microprocessor, that requires software or firmware to operate even if the software or firmware is not physically present. This definition of "circuitry" applies to all uses of the term herein, including in any claims. As a further example, as used herein, the term "circuitry" also includes an implementation that includes one or more processors and / or portions thereof and accompanying software and / or firmware. As another example, the term "circuitry" as used herein also includes, for example, a baseband integrated circuit or an application processor integrated circuit of a mobile phone or a similar integrated circuit in a server, a cellular network device, other network equipment (such as a core network device), a field programmable gate array, and / or other computing devices. The evolution of new communication technologies such as the fifth generation (5G) and the sixth generation (6G) improves upon existing technologies such as the second generation (2G) technology, the third generation (3G) technology, the fourth generation (4G) technology, and the long term evolution (LTE) technology, thereby improving network connectivity.

[0086] Figure 1 The device 10 is used in a communication system (eg Figure 2A-2B The apparatus 10 is an example of an apparatus of the communication system 100 shown in FIG. 1 , which will be described in detail below. The apparatus 10 may be configured as a network entity and / or a network function of the communication system 100. In some embodiments, the apparatus 10 may be a UE 102.

[0087] like Figure 1As shown, the apparatus 10 includes a processing circuit system 20 (generally referred to herein as a processor), a storage device 60 (generally referred to herein as a memory), and a communication interface 40. The processing circuit system 20 can communicate with the storage device 60 via a bus to transfer information between the processing circuit system 40 and the memory 60 of the apparatus 10. The memory 60 can be non-transitory and can include, for example, one or more volatile and / or non-volatile memories. In other words, for example, the storage device 60 can be an electronic storage device (e.g., a computer-readable storage medium) that includes a gate configured to store data (e.g., bits) that can be retrieved by a machine (e.g., a computing device such as a processing circuit system). The storage device 60 can be configured to store information, data, content, applications, instructions, etc. to enable the apparatus to perform various operations according to the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the memory device 60 can be configured to buffer input data for processing by the processing circuit system 20. Additionally or alternatively, the memory device 60 can be configured to store instructions for execution by the processing circuit system 20.

[0088] In some embodiments, the device 10 may be embodied in various computing devices as described above. However, in some embodiments, the device may be embodied as a chip or a chipset. In other words, the device may include one or more physical packages (e.g., chips) including materials, components, and / or wires on a structural assembly (e.g., a substrate). The structural assembly may provide physical strength, size savings, and / or electrical interaction limitations for the component circuitry included thereon. Therefore, in some cases, the device may be configured to implement an embodiment of the present disclosure on a single chip or as a single "system on a chip". Therefore, in some cases, a chip or a chipset may constitute a device for performing one or more operations to provide the functions described herein. In some embodiments, the device 10 may be a computing device, such as a stand-alone computer, a distributed computing system, or a cloud computing system. For example, the device 10 may be used for a core network 102, and may include one or more network functions of the core network 102.

[0089] The processing circuit system 20 can be embodied in a variety of different ways. For example, the processing circuit system 20 can be embodied as one or more of various hardware processing devices, such as a coprocessor, a microprocessor, a controller, a digital signal processor (DSP), a processing element with or without an accompanying DSP, or various other circuit systems, including integrated circuits, such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), microcontroller units (MCUs), central processing units (CPUs), multi-core CPUs, graphics processing units (GPUs), tensor processing units (TPUs), hardware accelerators, dedicated computer chips, etc. Therefore, in some embodiments, the processing circuit system may include one or more processing cores configured to execute independently. The multi-core processing circuit system can implement multi-processing within a single physical package. Additionally or alternatively, the processing circuit system may include one or more processors configured in series via a bus to implement independent execution of instructions, pipelines, and / or multi-threading.

[0090] In an example embodiment, the processing circuit system 20 may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory device 60 or otherwise accessible to the processing circuit system 20. Additionally or alternatively, the processing circuit system may be configured to perform hard-coded functions. Therefore, whether configured by hardware or software methods, or by a combination of the two, the processing circuit system may represent an entity (e.g., physically embodied in a circuit system) that is capable of performing operations according to embodiments of the present disclosure when configured accordingly. Therefore, for example, when the processing circuit system is embodied as an ASIC, FPGA, etc., the processing circuit system may be specially configured hardware for performing the operations described herein. Alternatively, as another example, when the processing circuit system 20 is embodied as an executor of instructions, the instructions may specifically configure the processor to perform the algorithms and / or operations described herein when executing the instructions. However, in some cases, the processing circuit system 20 may be a processor of a specific device (e.g., an image or video processing system) that is configured to further configure the processing circuit through instructions for performing the algorithms and / or operations described herein to adopt embodiments of the present disclosure. Processing circuitry 20 may include, among other things, a clock, an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), and logic gates configured to support operations of the processing circuitry.

[0091] The communication interface 40 can be any device, such as a device or circuit system embodied in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and software, which is configured to receive and / or transmit data, including media content in the form of video or image files, one or more audio tracks, etc. In this regard, the communication interface 40 may include, for example, an antenna (or multiple antennas) and supporting hardware and / or software for implementing wireless communication. Additionally or alternatively, the communication interface may include a circuit system for interacting with (multiple) antennas to transmit wireless or radio signals through (multiple) antennas or process the reception of wireless or radio signals received by (multiple) antennas. In some environments, the communication interface may alternatively or also support wired communication. Therefore, for example, the communication interface may include a communication modem and / or other hardware / software to support communication via cable, digital subscriber line (DSL), universal serial bus (USB) or other mechanisms.

[0092] The apparatus 10 may implement certain example embodiments disclosed herein and / or components thereof.

[0093] Figure 2A-2B Various examples of a mobile network 100 are shown that includes a user equipment 102 connected to an application server 112 via a radio access network 104 and a core network 101 (which together form a communication system) and a data network 116. In some embodiments, the mobile network 100 may include any suitable configuration, number, orientation, location and / or size of components and dedicated equipment configured to provide an air interface (e.g., New Radio (NR)) for communication or connection between a user equipment 102 (UE 102) and a data network 116 (DN 116) via a core network 101 (CN 101) of the communication system. Figure 2A As shown, a mobile network 100 can be provided in which a UE 102 is in operable communication with a 5G access network (5G-AN) (e.g., (R)AN 104). In some embodiments, the UE 102 can be in operable communication with another access network (AN) (not shown) that connects the UE 102 to the core network 101. Examples of other ANs include a wired access network terminating at a W-AGF or an untrusted non-3GPP access network terminating at a N3IWF. The access network may include one or more base stations, access points, access network nodes, etc. In some embodiments, the 5G access network (5G-RAN) 104 can communicate with the CN 101 or its network entities or network functions using reference points. In some embodiments, the CN 101 can provide a data connection (e.g., a PDU session) between the UE 102 and the DN 116, such as for sending data, messages, requests, etc.

[0094] The RAN 104 may include multiple RAN nodes, such as a Next Generation Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) node 104a ( Figure 2A ), for providing connectivity to the core network 101 for one or more UEs 102. The NG-RAN node 104a may include a gNB, NG-eNB, etc., and provides NR access to the UE 102 in its service area. It should be understood that while the embodiments are described in conjunction with 5G-AN (e.g., RAN), R(AN), NG-RAN, and 5G, other types of access networks may be developed in the future.

[0095] In some embodiments, DN 116 or CN 101 may communicate with an application server (AS) hosted on an AS or an application function (AF) 112. (R)AN 104, CN 101, DN 116 and / or AS / AF 112 may be associated with a network repository function (NRF) 124, a secure copy protocol (SCP), a secure edge protection proxy (SEPP), a policy control function (PCF) 114, etc. or any combination thereof.

[0096] In mobile networks such as Figure 2BIn the context of a mobile network as shown in ), the communication network 100 may include a series of connected network devices and dedicated hardware that are distributed across a service area, state, province, city, or country / region, and one or more network entities that may be stored in and / or hosted by one or more of the connected network devices or dedicated hardware. In some embodiments, the UE 102 may be connected to the (R)AN 104, which may then relay communications between the UE 102 and the CN 101, which may be connected to the DN 116, which may communicate with one or more ASs (or AFs 112 hosted on the AS). In some embodiments, the UE 102 may communicate with the (R)AN 104 depicting any 5G-AN, which may act as a relay between the UE 102 and other components or services of the CN 101. For example, in some embodiments, the UE 102 may communicate with the (R)AN 104, which in turn may communicate with the access and mobility management function 108 (AMF 108). In other instances or embodiments, the UE 102 may communicate directly with the AMF 108. In some embodiments, the AMF 108 may communicate with one or more network functions (NFs) using a service-based interface, such as the authentication server function 120 (AUSF 120), the network slice selection function 122 (NSSF 122), the network repository function 124 (NRF 124), the policy control function 114 (PCF 114), the network data analysis function 126 (NWDAF 126), the unified data management function 118 (UDM 118), the AS / AF 112, the session management function 110 (SMF 110), etc.

[0097] (R)AN 104 may also be configured to communicate with a multicast / broadcast session management function 128 (MB-SMF 128). MB-SMF 128 maintains downstream nodes based on responses from AMF 108. In some embodiments, MB-SMF 128 establishes a shared tunnel for user plane entities. MB-SMF may be configured to perform various functions related to requesting and responding about the creation of MBS sessions, and / or subscribing and / or notifying entities about supported MBS services.

[0098] In another embodiment, once the AF 112 subscribes to the delivery status indication, the MB-SMF 128 notifies the AF 112 through the NEF and MBSF of various conditions that affect the delivery of the multicast / broadcast service (MBS) session. The (R)AN 104 may broadcast a temporary mobile group identity (TMGI) to indicate the MBS service over the wireless interface. Additional (R)ANs may be configured to report successful MBS session establishment, and the AMF 108 may communicate with the MB-SMF 128 through various messages to indicate the status of the MBS session.

[0099] According to certain embodiments, during establishment of an MBS session, AF 112 subscribes at MB-SMF 128 to receive notifications about areas that do not support MBS broadcast. AMF 108, when processing a request for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session, checks whether one or more (R)AN nodes supporting the service area are configured to support MBS broadcast. If one or more areas are not supported, AMF 108 notifies MB-SMF 128 and AF 112 that one or more areas are not supported and indicates the one or more areas in the notification. In response to the notification, MB-SMF 128 combines one or more areas that do not support MBS broadcast and notifies AF 112. AF 112 may be configured to determine whether to deliver data to UEs in one or more areas that are not supported via unicast or to establish an MBS multicast session instead.

[0100] Figure 2B 1 and 12. The multicast / broadcast service function 129 (MBSF) and / or the network exposure function 130 (NEF) are shown in FIG. NEF 130. NEF 130 is configured to perform various functions to support MBS sessions. NEF 130 may provide an interface to AF 112 to perform MBS procedures (e.g., service configuration, MBS session management, etc.). NEF 130 may also communicate with AF 112 to determine transmission parameters and perform session operations. In some embodiments, NEF 130 may be configured to select a specific MB-SMF to serve the MBS session. NEF 130 may also be configured to provide MBS session assistance information for the purpose of receiving MBS session data.

[0101] MBSF 130 is configured to perform various functions to support MBS sessions. MBSF 130 communicates with AF 112 and MB-SMF 128 to perform MBS session operations. MBSF 130 may also communicate with these entities to perform session transmission and determine transmission parameters. In some embodiments, NEF 130 may be configured to select a specific MB-SMF to provide services for an MBS session.

[0102] In some embodiments, NEF / MBSF 129 and 130 and / or MB-SMF 128 compares one or more MBS service areas indicated in the request from AF 112 with information of one or more areas supporting MBS broadcast in (R)AN 104. If part or one or more sub-areas of the service area do not support MBS broadcast, NEF / MBSF 129 and 130 and / or MB-SMF 128 indicate this to AF 112 in a reply to the AF request. In response to the reply, AF 112 may determine whether to send data to users in the unsupported area via unicast, terminate the MBS broadcast session, or submit a new request with a reduced service area to NEF / MBSF 129 and 130 and / or MB-SMF 128.

[0103] In some embodiments, the SMF 110 may communicate with one or more user plane functions 106 (UPF 106, UPF 106a, UPF 106b, collectively referred to as "UPF 106"). By way of example only, in some embodiments, the UPF 106 may communicate with the (R)AN 104 and the DN 116. In other embodiments, the DN 116 may communicate with the first UPF 106a, and the (R)AN 104 may communicate with the second UPF 106b, while the SMF 110 communicates with the first and second UPFs 106a, b, and the first and second UPFs 106a, b communicate with each other.

[0104] In some embodiments, the UE 102 may include a single mode or dual mode device, so that the UE 102 can connect to one or more (R)ANs 104. In some embodiments, the (R)AN 104 may be configured to implement one or more radio access technologies (RATs), such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service (UMTS), LTE, or 5GNR, etc., which may be used to communicate with the UE 102 and the CN 101. In some embodiments, the (R)AN 104 may implement one or more base stations for control plane communications between the UE 102 and the AMF 108 of the CN 101.

[0105] In some embodiments, the mobile network 100 or components thereof (e.g., base stations, towers, etc.) may be configured to communicate with communication devices such as mobile phones (e.g., UE 102) via multiple different frequency bands (e.g., FR1 (below 6 GHz), FR2 (millimeter wave), other suitable frequency bands, sub-bands thereof, etc.). In some embodiments, the communication network 100 may include or employ massive multiple-input multiple-output (massive MIMO) antennas. In some embodiments, the UE 102 and / or the RAN 104 may include multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO) antennas. In some embodiments, the communication network 100 may employ edge computing, so that the computing system of the data network 116 is communicatively, physically, computationally, and / or temporally closer to the communication system (e.g., the UPF of the core network 101) to reduce latency and data traffic congestion. In some embodiments, the RAN 104 may employ other technologies, devices, or techniques, such as small cells, low-power RAN, beamforming of radio waves, WIFI-cellular convergence, non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA), channel coding, etc.

[0106] It should be appreciated that certain example embodiments described herein occur in the context of telecommunications networks, including but not limited to telecommunications networks that conform to and / or otherwise incorporate aspects of fifth generation (5G) architecture. Figure 2A-2B Various configurations and / or components of an example architecture of the communication network 100 are shown, but many other systems, system configurations, networks, network entities, and paths / protocols for communications therein are contemplated and considered within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0107] Although the methods, devices / apparatus, and computer program products / codes described herein are described in the context of a fifth generation core network (5GC) and system, e.g. Figure 2A-2B As shown and described above, the described methods, devices and computer program products can still be applied in a wider context in any suitable telecommunication system, network, standard and / or protocol. It is understood that the described methods, devices and computer program products can also be applied to future networks and systems that have not yet been developed, which is obvious to those skilled in the art based on the present disclosure.

[0108] Figure 3 is an example message flow according to certain example embodiments. Figure 3 As shown, the AMF may determine whether the NG-RAN node supports 5MBS broadcast by one or more of the following non-limiting examples:

[0109] Capability indicator received from the RAN node when establishing a connection with the AMF via the RAN node

[0110] By configuring RAN node capabilities, e.g., through the Operations, Administration and Maintenance (OAM) system

[0111] Error response when signaling to the RAN node to initiate an MBS broadcast session

[0112] The AMF may determine a portion or sub-area of ​​the MBS service area that is served by a RAN node that does not support MBS broadcast, such as by one or more of the following non-limiting examples, for example:

[0113] If the service area is represented by a cell ID, the portion of the cell ID representing the RAN node is used.

[0114] If the service area is represented by a tracking area, then the RAN node has knowledge of the configuration of the tracking area served.

[0115] Configuration of the service areas by RAN nodes, for example, by OAM. Configuration information is needed for tracking areas served by certain RAN nodes supporting MBS broadcast and other RAN nodes not supporting MBS broadcast.

[0116] When notified, the AF may identify UEs that are subscribed to the MBS session and are located in a portion or sub-area of ​​the MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast, and the AF may send data related to the MBS session to these UEs via unicast delivery. An MBS multicast session is established to replace the MBS broadcast session. The AF may also send a new MBS session modification request, where the service area is reduced to a portion or sub-area that supports MBS broadcast.

[0117] Alternatively, the AF may terminate the MBS broadcast session and establish an MBS multicast session instead of the MBS broadcast session.

[0118] exist Figure 3 In operation 1 of , UE 1 sends a cell notification (cell ID) to AF 112.

[0119] exist Figure 3 In operation 2, AF 112 transmits a broadcast session initiation request (MBS session 1, broadcast area (cell list), request for information about support and / or non-support) to AMF 108 through MB-SMF 128.

[0120] exist Figure 3 In operation 3 of , the AMF 108 is configured with one or more NG-RAN nodes that do not support broadcast, or

[0121] Figure 3Operation 3bis in FIG. 1 starts with the AMF 108 sending a NG Broadcast Session Establishment Request (MBS Session 1, Broadcast Area (Cell List)) to the NG-RAN node 104. The NG-RAN node 104 then sends a NG Broadcast Session Establishment Failure (Not Supported Message) in response to the request sent by the AMF 108. The AMF 108 adds the NG-RAN node 104 to the list of non-supported NG-RAN nodes.

[0122] exist Figure 3 In operation 4 of , the AMF 108 identifies a list of cells within the requested broadcast area that belong to the non-supporting NG-RAN node 104 (e.g., by taking the leftmost 20 bits).

[0123] exist Figure 3 In operation 5, AMF 108 sends a broadcast session start response (MBS session 1, list of non-supported cells in the broadcast area (due to non-support of NG-RAN nodes)) to MB-SMF 128. Then, MB-SMF 128 sends a notification (MBS session 1, list of non-supported cells in the broadcast area (due to no NG-RAN node support)) to AF 112.

[0124] exist Figure 3 In operation 6 of operation 1, AF 112 identifies a list of UEs of interest based on the report in operation 1 and initiates unicast delivery with these UEs.

[0125] exist Figure 3 In operation 7 of , AF 112 transmits a unicast delivery to UE 102 (MBS Session 1).

[0126] Figure 4 is an example message flow in accordance with certain example embodiments.

[0127] according to Figure 4 , the MB-SMF is configured (e.g., through OAM) with the service area it serves, and the portion or sub-area of ​​the service area that supports MBS broadcast. The MB-SMF stores this information (including the portion or sub-area of ​​the service area that supports MBS broadcast) in the NRF as part of its configuration file.

[0128] The NEF retrieves the MB-SMF profile (including part or one or more sub-areas of the service area supporting MBS broadcast) from the NRF to discover the MB-SMF, for example, triggered by the creation of an MBS session.

[0129] When an MBS session creation request for an MBS broadcast session is received from the AF, the NEF / MBSF compares the MBS service area received in the request with the service area of ​​the MB-SMF retrieved from the NRF and the portion or one or more sub-areas of the service area in which the MB-SMF supports MBS broadcast. If at least a portion or one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area are not included in the portion or one or more sub-areas of the service area in which MBS broadcast is supported in any MB-SMF profile, the NEF / MBSF sends an error response to the creation request to the AF, indicating that the cause of the error is that the requested MBS service area contains a portion or one or more sub-areas that do not support the MBS broadcast service, and indicates the unsupported portion or one or more sub-areas of the MBS service area and / or the supported portion or one or more sub-areas of the MBS service area. The NEF / MBSF performs this check only for MBS broadcast sessions, not for MBS multicast sessions. The NEF / MBSF may also check whether the requested service area matches the service area of ​​a single MB-SMF, otherwise providing an error response indicating that the service area is too large and an acceptable service area that can be served by a single MB-SMF. Both errors may be provided in combination.

[0130] When the reply is received, the AF may identify the UEs that subscribe to the MBS session and are located in a portion or one or more sub-areas of the original MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast, and send data related to the MBS session to these UEs via unicast delivery. The AF may also send a new MBS session establishment request, where the service area is narrowed down to a portion or one or more sub-areas that support MBS broadcast. Alternatively, the AF may establish an MBS multicast session instead of an MBS broadcast session.

[0131] like Figure 4 As shown, in operation 1. MB-SMF 128 is configured with a serving area and a served area supporting MBS broadcasting.

[0132] In operation 2, the MB-SMF 128 transmits Nnrf_NF:Management_NFRegister (MB-SMF profile (service area, MBS broadcast area of ​​service)) to the NRF 124.

[0133] In operation 3, the AF 112 determines to create an MBS broadcast service using an MBS service area.

[0134] In operation 4, the AF 112 sends an Nnef_MBSSession_Create request (MBS session ID, service type=broadcast, MBS service area) to the NEF 130 and / or the MBSF 129.

[0135] In operation 5 , the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 transmits an Nnrf_NFDiscovery request (MB-SMF) to the NRF 124 .

[0136] In operation 6, the NRF 124 sends a Nnrf_NFDiscovery reply (MB-SMF Profile (Service Area, MBS Broadcast Area of ​​Service)) to the NEF 130 and / or the MBSF 129.

[0137] In operation 7, the AF 112 checks whether the MBS service area is included in the area supporting MBS broadcasting.

[0138] When the MBS service area is not included in the served area supporting MBS broadcast, operations 8 to 10 are performed. In operation 8, the AF 112 sends a nef_MBSSession_Create response (Error: The MBS service area contains a portion or one or more sub-areas that do not support MBS broadcast, an unsupported portion or one or more unsupported sub-areas in the MBS service area, and / or a supported portion or sub-area in the MBS service area) to the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129.

[0139] In operation 9, the AF 112 performs unicast transmission of MBS data to UEs outside the supported MBS service area.

[0140] In operation 10 , the AF 112 sends an Nnef_MBSSession_Create request (MBS session ID, service type=broadcast, reduced MBS service area) to the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 .

[0141] In case that the MBS service area is included in the served area supporting MBS broadcast, the process proceeds to operation 11. In operation 11, the NEF / MBSF 130 transmits an Nmbsmf_MBSSession_Create request to the NRFs 124 and 129.

[0142] In operation 12 , the NRF 124 sends an Nmbsmf_MBSSession_Create response back to the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 .

[0143] In operation 13 , the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 send an Nnef_MBSSession_Create response to the AF 112 .

[0144] Figure 5 is an example message flow in accordance with certain example embodiments.

[0145] The MB-SMF is configured (eg, through OAM) with the service area it serves, and a portion or one or more sub-areas of that service area that support MBS broadcast.

[0146] When an MBS session creation or update request for an MBS broadcast session is received from the AF (possibly through the NEF / MBSF), the MB-SMF compares the MBS service area received in the request with the portion or one or more sub-areas of the service area that supports MBS broadcast. If at least a portion or one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area are not included in the portion or one or more sub-areas of the service area that supports MBS broadcast, the MB-SMF indicates in a response to the creation or update request that the requested MBS service area contains a portion or one or more sub-areas that do not support the MBS broadcast service, and indicates the unsupported portion or one or more sub-areas of the MBS service area and / or the supported portion or one or more sub-areas of the MBS service area. The MB-SMF performs this check only for MBS broadcast sessions, not for MBS multicast sessions. The MB-SMF can also check whether the requested service area matches the service area it serves, otherwise, an indication of the service area being too large and the acceptable service area that can be served by a single MB-SMF is provided. The two indications can be provided in combination.

[0147] When receiving the reply, the AF can identify UEs subscribed to the MBS session and located in the original MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast, and send data related to the MBS session to these UEs via unicast delivery. Alternatively, the AF can terminate the MBS broadcast session and establish an MBS multicast session to replace the MBS broadcast session.

[0148] exist Figure 5 In operation 1, the MB-SMF 128 is configured with a serving area and a served area supporting MBS broadcasting.

[0149] exist Figure 5 In operation 2 of , the AF 112 determines to use the MBS service area to create or modify the MBS broadcast service.

[0150] exist Figure 5 In operation 3 of , the AF 112 sends a Nnef_MBSSession_Create / Update request (MBS session ID, service type=broadcast, MBS service area) to the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 .

[0151] exist Figure 5In operation 4, the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 send a Nnef_MBSSession_Create / Update request (MBS session ID, service type=broadcast, MBS service area) to the MB-SMF 128.

[0152] exist Figure 5 In operation 5, the MB-SMF 128 checks whether the MBS service area is included in the served area supporting the MBS broadcast.

[0153] In the case where the MBS service area is not included in the served area supporting MBS broadcasting, Figure 5 Operations 6 to 8 shown in the dashed box are performed before operation 11. In operation 6, an Nnef_MBSSession_Create / Update response is sent from the MB-SMF 128 to the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 (the MBS service area includes a portion that does not support MBS broadcasting, an unsupported portion of the MBS service area, and / or a supported portion of the MBS service area).

[0154] exist Figure 5 In operation 7, the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 send an Nnef_MBSSession_Create / Update response to the AF 112 (the MBS service area includes a portion that does not support MBS broadcasting, a portion that does not support MBS service area, and / or a portion that supports MBS service area).

[0155] exist Figure 5 In operation 8 of , the AF 112 performs unicast transmission of MBS data to UEs outside the supported MBS service area.

[0156] When the MBS service area is included in the served area supporting MBS broadcast, Figure 5 Operations 6 to 7 indicated within the dotted box in FIG. 1 are performed before operation 11. In operation 6, an Nmbsmf_MBSSession_Create / Update response is sent from the MB-SMF 128 to the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129.

[0157] exist Figure 5 In operation 7 of the present invention, the NEF / MBSF 130 and 129 send an Nnef_MBSSession_Create / Update response to the AF 112.

[0158] exist Figure 5 In operation 11 of , the MB-SMF 128 performs procedures for broadcasting to initiate an MBS session towards the AMF and NG_RAN.

[0159] Figure 6 Operations that may be performed by an access and mobility function (AMF), such as apparatus 10 embodied by AMF 108, are shown in accordance with certain example embodiments.

[0160] As shown in operation 600, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity (e.g., AMF 108) includes means such as processing circuitry 20, memory 60, etc. for determining that a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​a requested MBS service area.

[0161] As shown in operation 602, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as AMF 108) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for providing at least one of the following to a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) in response to a determination: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0162] The apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity such as the AMF 108 includes means such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for receiving an MBS session start request from an MB-SMF, the request including a request for information regarding support for MBS broadcast transmissions in an MBS service area, wherein determining and providing is performed in response to the request.

[0163] The apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity, such as the AMF 108, comprises means (such as the processing circuitry 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc.) for receiving an MBS capability indicator from a Next Generation Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) node. The apparatus 100 embodied by the network entity, such as the AMF 108, comprises means for storing the MBS capability indicator in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determination is based at least on the MBS capability indicator.

[0164] The determination of operation 600 may include (such as using the processing circuit system 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc.): sending a request to the NG-RAN node to initiate MBS broadcast transmission or establish a broadcast context, receiving a response to the request (the response includes an error indicating that at least one of MBS broadcast transmission or establishment of a broadcast context is not supported), and storing the indication that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in association with one of the following: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node.

[0165] The determination of operation 600 may include (such as using the processing circuit system 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc.): based on the stored configuration for one or more MBS broadcast transmissions, comparing the area served by one or more NG-RAN nodes associated with the requested MBS service area, and determining whether the one or more NG-RAN nodes support MBS broadcast transmissions.

[0166] The determination of operation 600 may include (such as using the processing circuit system 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc.): determining a first group of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to NG-RAN node service cells of the requested MBS service area, deriving a second group of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to at least one of the following: NG-RAN nodes in the first group that do not support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information, or NG-RAN nodes in the first group that support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information, and performing at least one of the following operations: determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission from the second group of NG-RAN nodes that do not support MBS broadcast transmission, or determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission from the second group of NG-RAN nodes that support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0167] The determination of operation 600 may include (such as using the processing circuit system 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc.): determining the first group of NG-RAN node IDs by obtaining a predetermined number of leftmost bits of the cell IDs of the cells included in the requested MBS service area, determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission by identifying a cell whose cell ID has a predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second group of NG-RAN node IDs, or determining at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission by identifying a cell whose cell ID has a predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second group of NG-RAN node IDs.

[0168] Figure 7 Operations that may be performed by an application function (AF), such as those performed by device 10 embodied by AF 112, are shown according to certain example embodiments.

[0169] As shown in operation 700, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as an AF) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session, or a request for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of the following: a network opening function (NEF), a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), the request including a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session.

[0170] As shown in operation 702, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as AF 112) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for receiving a message indicating at least one of the following: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0171] As shown in operation 704, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as, AF 112) includes a device (such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc.) for performing at least one of the following based on the received message: identifying one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; sending data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication; sending an MBS broadcast session creation request, wherein the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; terminating an MBS broadcast session associated with one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission, sending an MBS broadcast session update request, wherein the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas of the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; or initiating an MBS multicast session.

[0172] According to certain embodiments, an apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity (such as AF 112) includes means (such as processing circuitry 20, communication interface 40, memory 60, etc.) for receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that desires to receive an MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of at least one UE.

[0173] According to certain embodiments, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as AF 112) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a memory 60, etc., for identifying one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission based on the received message and the UE location of at least one UE.

[0174] According to certain embodiments, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity such as the AF 112 includes means such as the processing circuit system 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc., for sending data to one or more second UEs via unicast communication. According to certain embodiments, the data sent via unicast communication is transmitted as MBS data in one or more sub-areas supporting MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS sub-areas.

[0175] The received message, such as the message of operation 702 , may be a notification message, and certain example embodiments, such as the AF 112 with the processing circuitry 20 , may subscribe for information regarding support for MBS broadcast transmissions in the MBS service area.

[0176] The received message, such as the message of operation 702, may be a response to a request to create or update an MBS broadcast session sent from at least one of the NEF, MB-SMF, or MBSF.

[0177] AF 112 (such as having processing circuit system 20, etc.) may send an MBS broadcast session creation request, where the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast, and / or terminate an MBS broadcast session associated with one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0178] AF 112 (such as having processing circuit system 20) may send an MBS broadcast session update request, wherein the MBS service area does not include one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast. AF 112 (such as having processing circuit system 20) may initiate a multicast session, the multicast session including a multicast service area including at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0179] According to certain embodiments, an apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity, such as AF 112, includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that desires to receive an MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of at least one UE, and identifying one or more second UEs based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE.

[0180] According to certain embodiments, the request for initiating an MBS multicast session includes the requested MBS service area or a second MBS service area including at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmissions.

[0181] Figure 8 Operations that may be performed by a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF), such as operations performed by apparatus 10 embodied by the MB-SMF, are shown in accordance with certain example embodiments.

[0182] As shown in operation 800, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as MB-SMF 128) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for receiving a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session from at least one of a network repository function (NRF), a network open function (NEF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), the request including a requested MBS service area.

[0183] As shown in operation 802, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity (such as the MB-SMF 128) includes means such as the processing circuit system 20, the memory 60, etc., for determining, at least one of which is to determine that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area.

[0184] As shown in operation 804, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity (e.g., MB-SMF 128) includes means such as processing circuit system 20, communication interface 40, memory 60, etc., for sending a response to at least one of a network repository function (NRF), a network open function (NEF), or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), the response indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission. The response may be sent in response to a request for creating or updating an MBS broadcast session.

[0185] According to certain embodiments, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity (such as the MB-SMF 128) includes means such as the processing circuit system 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc., for sending a request for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session to an access and mobility management function (AMF), the request including a second requested MBS service area, wherein the second requested MBS service area includes the requested MBS service area or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area, and receiving a message from the AMF, the message indicating at least one of the following: the MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, the MBS broadcast transmission is supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that supports the MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission. The MB-SMF 128 includes means such as the processing circuit system 20, the memory 60, etc., for determining the sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission using the message received from the AMF.

[0186] According to certain embodiments, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (e.g., MB-SMF 128) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for receiving a configuration regarding at least one of an area that supports MBS broadcast transmission or an area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein, based on the configuration, it is determined that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area.

[0187] According to certain embodiments, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as the MB-SMF 128) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for requesting a network resource function (NRF) to store at least one of the following in the configuration file information of the device: information about an area served by the device that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the device that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein it is determined based on the configuration that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area.

[0188] Fig. 9 Operations that may be performed by at least one of a network opening function (NEF) or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), such as operations performed by apparatus 10 embodied by the MBSF, are shown according to certain example embodiments.

[0189] As shown in operation 900, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as NEF 130 and / or MBSF 129) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for receiving a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast session from an application function (AF), the request including a requested MBS service area.

[0190] As shown at operation 902, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity such as NEF 130 and / or MBSF 129 includes means such as processing circuitry 20, memory 60, etc., for determining that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​a requested MBS service area.

[0191] As shown in operation 904, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity (such as NEF 130 and / or MBSF 129) includes means such as processing circuit system 20, communication interface 40, memory 60, etc., for sending a response to the AF indicating at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission. The response may be sent in response to a request for creating or updating an MBS broadcast session.

[0192] The device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as NEF 130 and / or MBSF 129) includes devices such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for retrieving profile information of at least one multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF) from a network repository function (NRF), the profile information including at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination is based on the retrieved profile information.

[0193] Fig.10 Operations that may be performed by a network repository function (NRF), such as apparatus 10 embodied by the NRF, are shown according to certain example embodiments.

[0194] As shown in operation 1000, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as NRF 124) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for receiving a request for storing at least one of the following in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function (MB-SMF): information about an area of ​​MB-SMF services that supports multicast and broadcast service (MBS) broadcast transmission, or information about an area of ​​MB-SMF services that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0195] As shown in operation 1002, the device 100 embodied by the network entity (e.g., NRF 124) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a memory 60, etc., for storing profile information, which profile information includes at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0196] As shown at operation 1004, the apparatus 100 embodied by a network entity such as the NRF 124 includes means such as the processing circuitry 20, the communication interface 40, the memory 60, etc., for receiving a request for retrieving profile information related to the MB-SMF.

[0197] As shown in operation 1006, the device 100 embodied by a network entity (such as NRF 124) includes a device such as a processing circuit system 20, a communication interface 40, a memory 60, etc., for providing profile information, which profile information includes at least one of the following: information about the area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

[0198] Some figures herein illustrate message flows, signal flows, and / or call flows according to example embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be understood that each of the blocks in the figure can be implemented by various means, such as hardware, firmware, processors, circuits, and / or other communication devices associated with executing software including one or more computer program instructions. For example, the above one or more processes can be embodied by computer program instructions. In this regard, the computer program instructions embodying the above processes can be stored by a storage device 60 of the device 10 using an embodiment of the present disclosure and executed by a processing circuit system 20. It should be understood that any such computer program instructions can be loaded onto a computer or other programmable device (e.g., hardware) to produce a machine so that the final computer or other programmable device implements the functions specified in the figure. These computer program instructions can also be stored in a computer-readable memory, which can instruct a computer or other programmable device to operate in a specific manner so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce a manufactured product, and the execution of the manufactured product implements the functions specified in the figure. The computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable device so that a series of operations are performed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process so that the instructions executed on the computer or other programmable device provide operations for implementing the functions specified in the figure.

[0199] Therefore, the blocks and message flows, call flows and / or signal diagrams in the figure support a combination of devices for performing the specified functions and a combination of operations for performing the specified functions. It should also be understood that one or more blocks in the figure and a combination of blocks in the figure can be implemented by a dedicated hardware computer system that performs the specified functions or a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0200] Many modifications and other embodiments of the disclosure described herein will occur to those skilled in the art who have the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing description and the associated drawings. Therefore, it should be understood that the disclosure is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, and modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

[0201] Furthermore, although the foregoing description and the associated drawings describe certain example embodiments in the context of certain example combinations of elements and / or functions, it should be understood that different combinations of elements and / or functions may be provided by alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the appended claims. In this regard, for example, different combinations of elements and / or functions than those explicitly described above are also contemplated, as may be set forth in certain appended claims. Although specific terms are used herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.

[0202] Although several variations have been described in detail above, other modifications or additions are possible. In addition to the features and / or variations described herein, other features and / or variations may also be provided. Furthermore, the implementations described above may be directed to various combinations and subcombinations of the disclosed features and / or combinations and subcombinations of several other features disclosed above. Other embodiments may be within the scope of the following claims.

[0203] If desired, the different functions discussed herein may be performed in a different order and / or simultaneously with each other. In addition, if desired, one or more of the above functions may be optional or combinable. Although various aspects of some embodiments are set forth in the independent claims, other aspects of some embodiments include other combinations of features of the embodiments and / or dependent claims with features of the independent claims, rather than just the combinations explicitly set forth in the claims. It is also noted herein that although certain example embodiments are described above, these descriptions should not be considered restrictive. On the contrary, various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of some embodiments defined in the appended claims. Other embodiments may be within the scope of the following claims. The term "based on" includes "at least based on". Unless otherwise specified, the use of the phrase "such as" means "such as, for example".

[0204] Therefore, it should be emphasized again that the various embodiments described herein are presented only by way of illustrative examples and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the claims. For example, alternative embodiments may utilize different communication system configurations, user equipment configurations, base station configurations, identity request procedures, messaging protocols, and message formats than those described in the context of the above illustrative embodiments. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate these and many other alternative embodiments within the scope of the appended claims.

[0205] As used herein, “at least one of: ” and “at least one of ” and similar expressions, where a list of two or more elements is connected by “and” or “or”, mean at least any one element, or at least any two or more elements, or at least all elements.

Claims

1. A device for a communication network, the device comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory comprising instructions of an access and mobility management function (AMF) of the communication network, wherein when executed by at least one processor, the instructions cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: determining that a multicast and broadcast service, MBS, broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; and In response to the determination, at least one of the following is provided to the multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the instructions further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: An MBS session start request is received from the MB-SMF, where the MBS session start request includes: A request for information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area, wherein the determining and the providing are performed in response to the request.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the instructions further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: receiving an MBS capability indicator from a Next Generation Radio Access Network, NG-RAN, node; and The MBS capability indicator is stored in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determining is based at least on the MBS capability indicator.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the determining comprises: Send a request to the NG-RAN node to start MBS broadcast transmission or set up a broadcast context; receiving a response to the request, the response comprising: an error indicating that at least one of the settings of the MBS broadcast transmission or the broadcast context is not supported; as well as The indication that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported is stored in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the determining comprises: receiving one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission from an operations, administration and maintenance (OAM) system, the one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission indicating at least one of: whether the NG-RAN node supports MBS broadcast transmission, an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission, an area not supporting broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the NG-RAN node; as well as The one or more configurations are stored, wherein the determining is based at least on the one or more configurations.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the determining further comprises: comparing, based on the stored one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmissions, areas served by the one or more NG-RAN nodes associated with the requested MBS service area; as well as determining whether MBS broadcast transmission is supported by the one or more NG-RAN nodes.

7. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the determining further comprises: determining a first set of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to NG-RAN node serving cells of the requested MBS service area; deriving a second set of NG-RAN node IDs, the second set of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to at least one of: the NG-RAN nodes in the first set that do not support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information, or the NG-RAN nodes in the first set that support the MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information; as well as Do at least one of the following: determining, according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes that do not support MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission; or Determine, according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes supporting MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area supporting the MBS broadcast transmission.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the determining further comprises performing at least one of the following: determining the NG-RAN node ID of the first group by obtaining a predetermined number of leftmost bits of the cell IDs of the cells included in the requested MBS service area; determining the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission by identifying the cell whose cell ID has the predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second set of NG-RAN node IDs; or The at least one sub-area supporting the MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS service area is determined by identifying the cell whose cell ID has the predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second set of NG-RAN node IDs.

9. A method for access and mobility management function AMF of a communication network, comprising: determining that a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; as well as In response to the determination, at least one of the following is provided to the multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF: the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising: An MBS session start request is received from the MB-SMF, the MBS session start request including a request for information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area, wherein the determining and the providing are performed in response to the request.

11. The method according to claim 9, further comprising: receiving an MBS capability indicator from a Next Generation Radio Access Network, NG-RAN, node; as well as The MBS capability indicator is stored in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determining is based at least on the MBS capability indicator.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the determining comprises: Send a request to the NG-RAN node to start MBS broadcast transmission or set up a broadcast context; receiving a response to the request, the response comprising an error indicating that at least one of the settings of the MBS broadcast transmission or the broadcast context is not supported; as well as The indication that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported is stored in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node.

13. The method according to any one of claims 9, wherein the determining comprises: receiving one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission from an operations, administration and maintenance (OAM) system, the one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission indicating at least one of: whether the NG-RAN node supports MBS broadcast transmission, an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission, an area not supporting broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the NG-RAN node; as well as The one or more configurations are stored, wherein the determining is based at least on the one or more configurations.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the determining further comprises: comparing, based on the stored one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmissions, areas served by the one or more NG-RAN nodes associated with the requested MBS service area; as well as determining whether MBS broadcast transmission is supported by the one or more NG-RAN nodes.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the determining further comprises: determining a first set of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to NG-RAN node serving cells of the requested MBS service area; deriving a second set of NG-RAN node IDs, the second set of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to at least one of: the NG-RAN nodes in the first set that do not support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information, or the NG-RAN nodes in the first set that support the MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information; as well as Do at least one of the following: determining, according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes that do not support MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission; or Determine, according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes supporting MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area supporting the MBS broadcast transmission.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the determining further comprises performing at least one of the following: determining the NG-RAN node ID of the first group by obtaining a predetermined number of leftmost bits of the cell IDs of the cells included in the requested MBS service area; determining the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission by identifying the cell whose cell ID has the predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second set of NG-RAN node IDs; or The at least one sub-area supporting the MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS service area is determined by identifying the cell whose cell ID has the predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second set of NG-RAN node IDs.

17. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to at least perform the method according to any one of claims 9 to 16.

18. A computer readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to at least perform the method according to any one of claims 9 to 16.

19. An apparatus for a communication network, the apparatus comprising: The Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) is configured to perform: determining that a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; as well as In response to the determination, at least one of the following is provided to the multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF: the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, an indication that at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the AMF is further configured to perform: An MBS session start request is received from the MB-SMF, where the MBS session start request includes: A request for information regarding support of MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area, wherein the determining and the providing are performed in response to the request.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the AMF is further configured to perform: receiving an MBS capability indicator from a Next Generation Radio Access Network, NG-RAN, node; and The MBS capability indicator is stored in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node, wherein the determining is based at least on the MBS capability indicator.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the determining further comprises: Send a request to the NG-RAN node to start MBS broadcast transmission or set up a broadcast context; receiving a response to the request, the response comprising: an error indicating that at least one of the settings of the MBS broadcast transmission or the broadcast context is not supported; as well as The indication that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported is stored in association with at least one of: an identifier of the NG-RAN node, an area served by the NG-RAN node, or an area including the area served by the NG-RAN node.

23. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the determining further comprises: receiving one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission from an operations, administration and maintenance (OAM) system, the one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmission indicating at least one of: whether the NG-RAN node supports MBS broadcast transmission, an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission, an area not supporting broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the NG-RAN node; as well as The one or more configurations are stored, wherein the determining is based at least on the one or more configurations.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the determining further comprises: comparing, based on the stored one or more configurations for MBS broadcast transmissions, areas served by the one or more NG-RAN nodes associated with the requested MBS service area; as well as determining whether MBS broadcast transmission is supported by the one or more NG-RAN nodes.

25. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the determining further comprises: determining a first set of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to NG-RAN node serving cells of the requested MBS service area; deriving a second set of NG-RAN node IDs, the second set of NG-RAN node IDs corresponding to at least one of: the NG-RAN nodes in the first set that do not support MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information, or the NG-RAN nodes in the first set that support the MBS broadcast transmission according to the stored information; and Wherein the AMF is further configured to perform at least one of the following: determining, according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes that do not support MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission; or Determine, according to the second group of NG-RAN nodes supporting MBS broadcast transmission, the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area supporting the MBS broadcast transmission.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the determining further comprises: determining the NG-RAN node ID of the first group by obtaining a predetermined number of leftmost bits of the cell IDs of the cells included in the requested MBS service area; determining the at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission by identifying the cell whose cell ID has the predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second set of NG-RAN node IDs; or The at least one sub-area supporting the MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS service area is determined by identifying the cell whose cell ID has the predetermined number of leftmost bits corresponding to one of the NG-RAN node IDs in the second set of NG-RAN node IDs.

27. An apparatus for a communication network, the apparatus comprising: at least one processor; at least one memory comprising instructions for an application function AF for the communication network, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the instructions cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, or a request for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of: a network exposure function NEF, a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF, or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, the request comprising: a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session; receiving a message indicating at least one of: the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; According to the received message, at least one of the following is performed: receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that desires to receive the MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of the at least one UE; identifying, based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE, one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and sending data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication; Sending an MBS broadcast session creation request, wherein the MBS service area does not include the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; terminating the MBS broadcast session associated with the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; sending an MBS broadcast session update request, wherein the MBS service area does not include the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; or Initiate an MBS multicast session.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the data transmitted via unicast communication is transmitted as MBS data in the one or more sub-areas supporting MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS sub-area.

29. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment UE that desires to receive the MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of the at least one UE; and The one or more second UEs are identified based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE.

30. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the request to initiate the MBS multicast session comprises: The requested MBS service area or a second MBS service area, wherein the second MBS service area includes: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission.

31. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the received message is a notification message; and wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the instructions further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: Subscribing to support information about the MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area.

32. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the received message comprises a response to a request to create or update an MBS broadcast session sent from at least one of the NEF, the MB-SMF, or the MBSF.

33. A method for controlling an application function of a communication network, the method comprising: sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, or for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of: a network exposure function NEF, a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF, or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, the request comprising: a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session; receiving a message indicating at least one of: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and According to the received message, at least one of the following is performed: identifying one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; sending data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication; Sending an MBS broadcast session creation request, wherein the MBS service area does not include the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; terminating the MBS broadcast session associated with the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; sending an MBS broadcast session update request, wherein the MBS service area does not include the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; or Initiate an MBS multicast session.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the data transmitted via unicast communication is transmitted as MBS data in the one or more sub-areas supporting MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS sub-area.

35. The method of claim 33, further comprising: receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment (UE) that desires to receive the MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of the at least one UE; as well as The one or more second UEs are identified based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE.

36. The method of claim 33, wherein the request for initiating the MBS multicast session comprises: The requested MBS service area or a second MBS service area, wherein the second MBS service area includes: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission.

37. The method of claim 33, wherein the received message is a notification message; and wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the instructions further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: Subscribing to support information about the MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area.

38. The method of claim 33, wherein the received message comprises a response to a request to create or update an MBS broadcast session sent from at least one of the NEF, the MB-SMF, or the MBSF.

39. The method of claim 33, further comprising: An MBS broadcast session creation request is sent, wherein the MBS service area does not include the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast.

40. A computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform a method according to any one of claims 33 to 39.

41. A computer readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to at least perform the method of any one of claims 33 to 39.

42. An apparatus for a communication network, the apparatus comprising: Application functions AF are configured to perform the following: sending a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, or for allocating an MBS session identifier to at least one of: a network exposure function NEF, a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF, or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, the request comprising: a requested MBS service area for the MBS broadcast session; receiving a message indicating at least one of: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and At least one of the following: identifying, based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE, one or more second UEs located in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; sending data to the one or more second UEs via unicast communication; Sending an MBS broadcast session creation request, wherein the MBS service area does not include the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; terminating the MBS broadcast session associated with the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast transmission; sending an MBS broadcast session update request, wherein the MBS service area does not include the one or more sub-areas in the requested MBS service area that do not support MBS broadcast; or Initiate an MBS multicast session.

43. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein the data transmitted via unicast communication is transmitted as MBS data in the one or more sub-areas supporting MBS broadcast transmission in the requested MBS sub-area.

44. The apparatus of claim 42, further comprising: means for receiving (a) information about at least one user equipment UE desiring to receive the MBS broadcast session, and (b) a UE location of the at least one UE; as well as Means for identifying the one or more second UEs based on the received message and the UE location of the at least one UE.

45. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein the request to initiate the MBS multicast session comprises: The requested MBS service area or a second MBS service area, wherein the second MBS service area includes: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support the MBS broadcast transmission.

46. ​​The apparatus of claim 42, wherein the received message is a notification message; and wherein the apparatus further comprises: means for subscribing to support information regarding the MBS broadcast transmission in the MBS service area.

47. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein the received message comprises a response to a request to create or update an MBS broadcast session sent from at least one of the NEF, the MB-SMF, or the MBSF.

48. An apparatus for a communication network, the apparatus comprising: at least one processor; at least one memory including instructions of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF, wherein when executed by at least one processor, the instructions cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: receiving a request from at least one of a network repository function NRF, a network opening function NEF, or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF to create or update a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, or to allocate an MBS session identifier, the request including a requested MBS service area; determining, at least one of which is determining that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; as well as A response is sent to at least one of the network storage function NRF, the network opening function NEF, or the multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, wherein the response indicates at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

49. The apparatus of claim 48, wherein the response is sent in response to the request to create or update the MBS broadcast session.

50. The apparatus of claim 48, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: Sending a request for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session to an access and mobility management function AMF, the request including a second requested MBS service area, wherein the second requested MBS service area includes: The requested MBS service area, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area; receiving, from the AMF, a message indicating at least one of: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; as well as The sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission is determined using the message received from the AMF.

51. The apparatus of claim 48, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: A configuration regarding at least one of: an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission or an area not supporting MBS broadcast transmission is received, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

52. The apparatus of claim 48, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to perform at least the following: Requesting a network resource function NRF to store at least one of the following in the profile information of the device: information about an area served by the device that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the device that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

53. A method of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF of a communication network, the method comprising: receiving a request from at least one of a network repository function NRF, a network opening function NEF, or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF to create or update a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, or to allocate an MBS session identifier, the request including a requested MBS service area; determining, at least one of which is determining that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; as well as A response is sent to at least one of the network storage function NRF, the network opening function NEF, or the multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, wherein the response indicates at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

54. The method of claim 53, wherein the response is sent in response to the request to create or update the MBS broadcast session.

55. The method of claim 53, further comprising: Sending a request for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session to an access and mobility management function AMF, the request comprising a second requested MBS service area, wherein the second requested MBS service area comprises: the requested MBS service area, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area; receiving, from the AMF, a message indicating at least one of: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; and The sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission is determined using the message received from the AMF.

56. The method of claim 53, further comprising: A configuration regarding at least one of: an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission or an area not supporting MBS broadcast transmission is received, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

57. The method of claim 54, further comprising: Requesting a network resource function NRF to store at least one of the following in the profile information of the device: information about an area served by the device that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the device that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

58. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform a method according to any one of claims 53 to 57.

59. A computer readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform at least the method of any one of claims 53 to 57.

60. An apparatus for a communication network, the apparatus comprising: The Multicast and Broadcast Session Management Function, MB-SMF, is configured to perform: receiving a request from at least one of a network repository function NRF, a network opening function NEF, or a multicast and broadcast service function MBSF to create or update a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, or to allocate an MBS session identifier, the request including a requested MBS service area; determining, at least one of which is determining that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area; as well as A response is sent to at least one of the network storage function NRF, the network opening function NEF, or the multicast and broadcast service function MBSF, wherein the response indicates at least one of the following: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

61. The apparatus of claim 60, wherein the response is sent in response to the request to create or update the MBS broadcast session.

62. The apparatus of claim 60, wherein the MB-SMF is further configured to: Sending a request for initiating or updating an MBS broadcast session to an access and mobility management function AMF, the request including a second requested MBS service area, wherein the second requested MBS service area includes: The requested MBS service area, or at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area; receiving, from the AMF, a message indicating at least one of: MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, MBS broadcast transmission is supported in the entire second requested MBS service area, at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or at least one sub-area in the second requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; as well as The sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission is determined using the message received from the AMF.

63. The apparatus of claim 60, wherein the MB-SMF is further configured to: A configuration regarding at least one of: an area supporting MBS broadcast transmission or an area not supporting MBS broadcast transmission is received, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

64. The apparatus of claim 60, wherein the MB-SMF is further configured to: Requesting a network resource function NRF to store at least one of the following in the profile information of the device: information about an area served by the device that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the device that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination that MBS broadcast transmission is not supported in at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area is based on the configuration.

65. An apparatus for a communication network, the apparatus comprising: at least one processor; at least one memory including instructions of at least one of a network opening function (NEF) or a multicast and broadcast service function (MBSF), wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the instructions cause the apparatus to perform the following: receiving, from an application function AF, a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, the request comprising a requested MBS service area; determining that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission; A response is sent to the AF indicating at least one of: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

66. The apparatus of claim 65, wherein the response is sent in response to a request to create or update the MBS broadcast session.

67. The apparatus of claim 65, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to: Retrieve profile information of at least one multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF from a network repository function NRF, the profile information comprising at least one of: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination is based on the retrieved profile information.

68. A method of communication, the method comprising: receiving, from an application function AF, a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service MBS broadcast session, the request comprising a requested MBS service area; determining that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission; A response is sent to the AF indicating at least one of: at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

69. The method of claim 68, wherein the response is sent in response to the request to create or update the MBS broadcast session.

70. The method of claim 68, further comprising: Retrieve profile information of at least one multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF from a network repository function NRF, the profile information comprising at least one of: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination is based on the retrieved profile information.

71. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform a method according to any one of claims 68 to 70.

72. A computer readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform at least the method of any one of claims 68 to 70.

73. An apparatus comprising: means for receiving, from an application function AF, a request for creating or updating a multicast and broadcast service, MBS, broadcast session, or a request for allocating an MBS session identifier, the request comprising a requested MBS service area; means for determining that at least one sub-area of ​​the requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission; A device for sending a response to the AF indicating at least one of: at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, at least one sub-area in the requested MBS service area that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or an indication that the entire requested MBS service area does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

74. The apparatus of claim 73, wherein the response is sent in response to a request to create or update the MBS broadcast session.

75. The apparatus of claim 73, further comprising: A device for retrieving profile information of at least one multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF from a network repository function NRF, the profile information comprising at least one of the following: information about an area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about an area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission, wherein the determination is based on the retrieved profile information.

76. An apparatus comprising: at least one processor; at least one memory including instructions for at least one network repository function (NRF), wherein execution of the instructions is performed by the at least one processor so that the apparatus performs at least the following: receiving a request for storing in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF at least one of: information about areas served by the MB-SMF that support MBS broadcast transmissions, or information about areas served by the MB-SMF that do not support MBS broadcast transmissions; storing the profile information, the profile information comprising at least one of: information about the area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; receiving a request for retrieval of profile information related to the MB-SMF; and The profile information is provided, wherein the profile information includes at least one of the following: information about the area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

77. A method of communication, the method comprising: receiving a request for storing in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function MB-SMF at least one of: information about areas served by the MB-SMF that support MBS broadcast transmissions, or information about areas served by the MB-SMF that do not support MBS broadcast transmissions; storing the profile information, the profile information comprising at least one of: information about the area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; receiving a request for retrieval of profile information related to the MB-SMF; and The profile information is provided, wherein the profile information includes at least one of the following: information about the area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

78. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform the method of claim 77.

79. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to at least perform the method of claim 77.

80. An apparatus for a communication network, the apparatus comprising: Means for receiving a request for storing in profile information of a multicast and broadcast session management function, MB-SMF, at least one of: information about areas served by said MB-SMF that support MBS broadcast transmissions, or information about areas served by said MB-SMF that do not support MBS broadcast transmissions; means for storing the profile information, the profile information comprising at least one of: information about the area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission; for receiving a request for retrieving profile information related to the MB-SMF; as well as A device for providing the profile information, the profile information comprising at least one of the following: information about the area served by the MB-SMF that supports MBS broadcast transmission, or information about the area served by the MB-SMF that does not support MBS broadcast transmission.

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