Multicast broadcast service management using assistance information
Patent Information
- Application Number
- PCT/CN2024/080937
- Authority / Receiving Office
- WO · WO
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2024-03-11
- Publication Date
- 2025-07-31
Smart Images

Figure CN2024080937_31072025_PF_FP_ABST
Abstract
Description
MULTICAST BROADCAST SERVICE MANAGEMENT USING ASSISTANCE INFORMATIONTECHNICAL FIELDThis patent document is directed generally to wireless communications.BACKGROUNDWireless communication technologies are moving the world toward an increasingly connected and networked society. The rapid growth of wireless communications and advances in technology has led to greater demand for capacity and connectivity. Other aspects, such as energy consumption, device cost, spectral efficiency, and latency are also important to meeting the needs of various communication scenarios. In comparison with the existing wireless networks, next generation systems and wireless communication techniques need to provide support for an increased number of users and devices, as well as support an increasingly mobile society.SUMMARYVarious techniques are disclosed that can be implemented by embodiments in mobile communication technology, including 5th Generation (5G) , new radio (NR) , and other wireless networks.In one example aspect, a wireless communication method is disclosed. The method includes receiving, by a wireless device, from a network device, assisting information related to multicast or broadcast service (MBS) ; and making a decision, by the wireless device, based on the assisting information, about an MBS service.In another example aspect, another wireless communication method is disclosed. The method includes transmitting, by a network device, to a wireless device, assisting information related to multicast or broadcast service (MBS that allows the wireless device to make a decision about an MBS service.In yet another exemplary aspect, the above-described methods are embodied in the form of a computer-readable medium that stores processor-executable code for implementing the method.In yet another exemplary embodiment, a device that is configured or operable to perform the above-described methods is disclosed. The device comprises at least one processor configured to implement the above-described method.The above and other aspects and their implementations are described in greater detail in the drawings, the descriptions, and the claims.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSFIG. 1 is a block diagram example of a wireless communication system.FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an example method of wireless communication.FIG. 3 shows an example of a wireless communication network.FIG. 4 shows an example of a signal exchange diagram.FIG. 5 shows an example of an uncertainty ellipse.FIG. 6 shows an example of a polygon shape.FIG. 7 shows an example of a signal exchange diagram.FIG. 8 shows examples of message syntaxes.FIG. 9 shows examples of message syntaxes.FIG. 10 shows examples of message syntaxes.FIG. 11A-11B shows examples of signal exchange diagrams.FIG. 12 shows an example of a signal exchange diagram.FIG. 13 shows an example of a signal exchange diagram.FIG. 14 is a flowchart of an example of a wireless communication method.FIG. 15 is a flowchart of an example of a wireless communication method.DETAILED DESCRIPTIONSection headings are used in the present document only to improve readability and do not limit scope of the disclosed embodiments and techniques in each section to only that section. Certain features are described using the example of 3GPP and Fifth Generation (5G) wireless protocol terminology. However, applicability of the disclosed techniques is not limited to only 5G wireless systems. Furthermore, in this patent document, the separator “ / ” is used to indicate that the listed options are alternatives that are equivalent to the “or” conjunction. Furthermore, various information elements (IE) examples disclosed herein includes fields that are labeled OPTIONAL to mean that these fields may be optionally implemented by embodiments using a nomenclature similar to the 3GPP protocol.1. IntroductionMBS service area is the area whether MBS (Multicast / Broadcast Services) service (including broadcast or multicast or unicast) is expected to be provided. In current MBS mechanism, Network Exposure Function (NEF) can obtain from MBS service provider with accurate MBS service area information in the format of geographical area information (e.g., one or more civic address or a list of geographical coverage information) . With this information, NEF can transfer appropriately the received MBS service area information to a list of cells or a list of TAIs, (tracking area identities) and forward this information to one or more function entities. These include AMF (access and mobility management function) , session management function SMF, user plane function UPF) and / or NG-RAN (next generation radio access network) for MBS service management. Such information may not be sufficient at NW’s side for above issues mentioned. A typical use case is when an NTN (Non-Terrestrial Network) cell across country boundary, then for MBS service that is only intended for country A might be received by UE at country B, in such case, additional MBS service area information (e.g., country information) could be provided to UE so that UE can use such information, and / or together with other information, e.g., its location, to choose the proper MBS service.In order to reach the above purpose, there are some limitations within current mechanism which requires new solutions. The limitation is summarized as below:Currently UE cannot get the coverage information of MBS service area, the handling of MBS coverage information is handled only by NW (network) . NW can include at least one of NG-RAN / CN (CoreNetwork) / Functional entities, e.g., NEF (network exposure function) , AMF (access and mobility management function) , UPF (user plan function) , SMF (session management function) , MBS-AMF, MBS-UPF, MBS-SMF, operation administration and maintenance OAM etc. NG-RAN nodes can include gNB, ng-eNB, eNB or other base station types (e.g., 6G base stations) . It would be beneficial to allow more information at UE side to help UE deciding the selection of proper MBS service, which requires enhancements on existing signaling procedure or defining new signaling.At NW’s side, the accurate MBS service area is only available at some functional entity of CN side (e.g., NEF) and MBS service provider, while for NG-RAN or other function entities of CN (e.g., SMF, UPF) can only get MBS service area in the format of cell identity list or TAI (tracking area identity) list which may not be sufficient. Enhancements on existing signaling procedure or defining new signaling procedure may be needed to allow NG-RAN or SMF / UPF to obtain more accurate or additional information for MBS session management, or for other purpose, e.g., to provide UE with MBS assisting information for MBS service selections.Furthermore, it can be seen that the limitation is that MBS broadcast service is provided in a per cell level, and the cell could cross different region while some MBS service maybe region specific. Enhancements can also be considered to allow provide MBS service in a granularity smaller than a cell, e.g., in a beam level, then it shall be possible for NW to handle the MBS service area in a more precise way. MBS service refers to broadcast / multicast service.For broadcast communication service, the same service and the same specific content data are provided simultaneously to all UEs in a geographical area (i.e., all UEs in the broadcast service area as defined in TS 23.247 are authorized to receive the data) . As discussed in above section, currently UE is not aware of the geographical coverage.A broadcast communication service is delivered to the UEs using a broadcast session. A UE can receive a broadcast communication service in RRC_IDLE, RRC_INACTIVE and RRC_CONNECTED state.For multicast communication service, the same service and the same specific content data are provided simultaneously to a dedicated set of UEs (i.e., not all UEs in the MBS service area as defined in TS 23.247 are authorized to receive the data) . A multicast communication service is delivered to the UEs using a multicast session. A UE can receive a multicast communication service in RRC_CONNECTED state and RRC_INACTIVE with mechanisms such as PTP (point-to-point) and / or PTM (point-to-multipoint) delivery, HARQ (hybrid acknowledgement repeat request) feedback / retransmission can be applied to both PTP and PTM transmission.For MBS broadcast service, system information SIB20 is used to provide UE with the information required to acquire MCCH / MTCH configuration for MBS service. MCCH (MBS control channel) is the logical channel carries the downlink message (from network NW to UE) containing the control information applicable for MBS services transmitted via broadcast or multicast MRBs. For MBS broadcast service, MBSBroadcastConfiguration message contains the control information applicable for MBS broadcast services transmitted via broadcast MRB (multicast radio bearer) . For MBS multicast service, the MBSMulticastConfiguration message contains the control information applicable for MBS multicast services transmitted via multicast MRBs for RRC_INACTIVE UEs. MTCH (MBS Traffic channel) is the logical channel for MBS traffic (MBS traffic channel) .FIG. 1 shows an example of a wireless communication system (e.g., a long term evolution (LTE) , 5G or NR cellular network) that includes a BS 120 and one or more user equipment (UE) 111, 112 and 113. In some embodiments, the uplink transmissions (131, 132, 133) can include uplink control information (UCI) , higher layer signaling (e.g., radio link layer messages) , or uplink information. In some embodiments, the downlink transmissions (141, 142, 143) can include DCI, reference signal configuration, reference signal transmissions, or high layer signaling or other downlink information. The UE may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet, a mobile computer, a machine to machine (M2M) device, a terminal, a mobile device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, and so on. The disclosed techniques may be implemented by the UE 111, 112 and / or 113.FIG. 2 is a block diagram representation of a portion of an apparatus, in accordance with some embodiments of the presently disclosed technology. An apparatus 205 such as a network device or a base station or a wireless device (or UE) , can include processor electronics 210 such as at least one processor or microprocessor that implements one or more of the techniques presented in this document. The apparatus 205 can include transceiver electronics 215 to send and / or receive wireless signals over one or more communication interfaces such as antenna (s) 220. The apparatus 205 can include other communication interfaces for transmitting and receiving data. Apparatus 205 can include one or more memories (not explicitly shown) configured to store information such as data and / or instructions. In some implementations, the processor electronics 210 can include at least a portion of the transceiver electronics 215. In some embodiments, at least some of the disclosed techniques, modules or functions are implemented using the apparatus 205.Examples of technical problems solved by the embodimentsMBS feature provides an important add-value for NR NTN (non terrestrial network) system, leveraging the large coverage of the NTN compared to TN. Terrestrial MBS features are equally available for NR NTN in the 5G specifications, but for some cases the intended service area is expected to be smaller than the coverage of a Uu cell, some enhancements need to be done to notify the service area of a Broadcast service.In TN (Terrestrial Network) MBS system, an MBS service area is an area an MBS service is provided, which consists of one or more cells or one or more tracking areas. For a location dependent MBS service, the MBS content is expected to be only provided the corresponding MBS service areas. CN (e.g., SMF) can proactively remove a UE from an MBS session (e.g., by rejecting UE’s join request) for a location dependent MBS session due to its location is outside the MBS service area.Due to large coverage of NTN cell, a typical NTN cell coverage or NTN tracking area can be multiple times of a typical MBS areas which makes it difficult to provide equivalent MBS service over NTN as in TN with current MBS mechanism. A typical example is given in FIG. 3.As depicted in FIG. 3, MBS service 1 is intended for MBS service over TN cell 2~4 in country A while MBS service 2 is intended for TN cell 8~9 in country B. And the GEO cells covers TN cells 2~9. In this case GEO cell cannot be used to provided either MBS service 1 or 2 based on current MBS mechanism since in current MBS the minimum unit of MBS service area is one cell. Which means MBS service 1 intended for country A maybe received by user in country B or vice versa. To address this issue, enhancements are needed to allow provide more accurate MBS service area information to UE and / or NG-RAN and / or CN for MBS service management, especially for location dependent MBS service.In one way, the MBS service area information (e.g., the geographical coverage information) can be provided to UE to help UE to decide whether to receive the corresponding MBS service or not.In another way, additional MBS service area information (e.g., the geographical coverage information) , can help NW with more precise MBS service management. For example, NW can be based on UE location and the MBS service area information to decide whether to provide UE with the MBS service, which includes UE selection, rejecting / accepting UE request to join the MBS session, or selecting proper beam (e.g., satellite beam) for broadcast etc.To address above mentioned issues, at least one of below enhancements can be considered (here Alt represents alternatives) :Alt1: Make MBS assisting information (e.g., information relevant to MBS service area) available at UE’s side, UE based on the MBS assisting information and / or its location / or registered NW to decide whether / how to select and receives the MBS dataAlt2: Make additional MBS service area information (other than cell identity list or TAI list as currently defined) available at NW, NW based on this information together with UE location to assist MBS management, e.g., update MBS configuration, accept / reject UE request for establish MBS PDU session, modify / remove MBS PDU session. In some examples, if used with alt1, NW can transfer the received additional MBS service area information to MBS assisting information of alt1 (if needed) and provides it to UE.Alt3: Introduce signaling enhancements to allow providing MBS service in beam level. The beam type can be at least one of synchronization signal block SSB, channel state information reference signal CSI-RS.a. In this alternative, NW can, based on the received geographical coverage of each MBS service, map each MBS service to one or more beams with coverage the same or smaller than the geographical coverage of each MBS service. The options for NW to obtain geographical coverage of each MBS service is as discussed in detailed section of alternative 2.b. In this alternative, NW needs to provide UE with additional MBS beam information include at least the mapping between MBS service and beams, so that UE can know which beam can be used to receive the interested MBS service. The additional MBS beam information includes at least one of below:i. MBS service information, e, g., MBS service identity.ii. Number of beams used for MBS serviceiii. Beam type, which indicates the type of beams used for MBS service reception. The beam type can be at least one of secondary synchronization block SSB, or channel state information reference signal CSI-RS.iv. Beam index, which indicates the beam used for MBS service receptionv. First beam index, which indicates a first beam for mapping when beam periodicity is configured.vi. Beam mapping periodicity, which indicates the periodicity a beam is used for an MBS service. In one example, it can be integer number n, when configured the MBS service is mapped to a beam, in first beam indicate by first beam index, and in every n beams.vii. Mapping between beam and MBS service, which includes at least one of below:1. One or multiple beams is mapped to MBS service.2. One beam is mapped to one or more MBS serviceNW can include at least one of NG-RAN / CN / Functional entities, e.g., network exposure function NEF, AMF, UPF, Session management Function SMF, MBS-AMF, MBS-UPF, MBS-SMF, operation administration and maintenance OAM etc. NG-RAN nodes can include gNB, ng-eNB, eNB or other base station types (e.g., 6G base stations) .Above alternatives can be used independently or in combination. For example, alt1 and alt2 can be used together. NW obtains from MBS service provider / NEF the MBS service area information for MBS management, and NW can further transfer the received service area information into MBS assisting information, and deliver this MBS assisting information to UE, where UE can based on at least one of the received MBS assisting information, its location or its used NW (e.g., registered public land mobile network PLMN) to decide whether / how to select the MBS service and receives the MBS service traffic. In another example, combination of alt 2 and alt 3 can be considered. For example, NW receive from MBS service provider the MBS service area information. Based on this information, NW can map the MBS services to one or more beams covering the corresponding MBS service area of the MBS service, and deliver the MBS data over the selected beams etc.The term MBS service in this patent document is equivalent to the term MBS session. In some examples, each MBS service / session can be identified by an MBS service identity. In this patent document, the MBS service identity can be at least the MBS session identity (e.g., temporary mobile group identity TMGI) . In some examples, the MBS service identity identifying an MBS service / session can be TMGI and MBS group RNTI (e.g., g-RNTI) . The MBS group RNTI is used to schedule a group of UEs.Additional embodiment examples for ALT1ISSUE 0: COMMON PROCEDUREFIG. 4 depicts general steps for alt1. UE receives MBS assisting information from a network device and decides whether to receive or release MBS service based on the received MBS assisting information.The steps include the following.Step 1: UE receives from NW the MBS assisting information for MBS service selection.In various embodiments, the MBS assisting information can include at least information relevant to an MBS service area (possible terminology may be but not limited to intended / target / allowed MBS service area) . To achieve the purpose, UE decision to select proper MBS service for reception or to join can be based on at least one of this MBS assisting information, its interests, its location, or regulations. The MBS assisting information can be associated to one or more MBS services and / or MBS service frequencies.Step 2: UE based on at least one of the received assisting information and / or its location and / or its used public land mobile network PLMN (e.g., registered PLMN RPLMN / equivalent PLMN EPLMN) to decide whether an MBS service is available or suitable or allowed or qualified for the UE, or whether the MBS service is the targeted or intended MBS service for the UE.In the following description, the phrase ‘is allowed’ , may be, in various embodiments, be equivalent to: is available, is suitable, is qualified, is targeted, or is intended.Step 3: Based on outcome of step 2, there could be different cases:■ Case 1: There is no allowed MBS service for UE based on the MBS assisting information provided:in this case, UE can perform at least one of below actions:◆ Skip acquiring (not acquire) the MBS configuration, e.g., not monitor, or not acquire MCCH.◆ Skip monitoring (not monitor) the scheduling information for MBS data reception◆ Not receive the MBS data◆ Release MBS session that it is considered as no longer allowed, if previously stored.◆ Release an on-going MBS session that it is considered as no longer allowed, if any.◆ Suspend receiving an MBS service that is no longer allowed, if previously stored or if currently on-going. In this case the suspended MBS service can be resumed in the future if it becomes allowed for the UE.In some examples, UE release MBS session by releasing the broadcast or multicast MRB.■ Case 2: There is at least one MBS service provided in the cell that is allowed for UE, UE can perform at least one of below for the allowed MBS service:◆ Acquire the configuration information used for MBS reception, e.g., initiate MCCH acquisition, or◆ Based on UE’s interests, UE’s capability to select among the allowed MBS services that is about to start / is on-going to receive the MBS data, e.g., by initiating broadcast MRB establishment procedure.◆ Resume receiving an MBS service / session that is previously suspended, if any.■ Considering the mobility of UE and satellite, it is possible that an MBS service was allowed becomes not allowed anymore, in such case, UE can release the MBS service that it is receiving, e.g., release the broadcast / multicast MRB or suspend the MBS service.For step 1, the signaling options used for delivering MBS assisting information from NW to UE includes at least one of below:● In system information, at least one of below system information can be considered:■ SIB1■ SIB19■ SIB25, which is used to provide TN coverage information to assist neighbor cell measurements for the UEs in an NTN cell. In this case, SIB25 can be extended for providing MBS assisting information.■ SIB20 which is to provide information required to acquire the MCCH / MTCH configuration for MBS broadcast.■ SIB21 this SIB is to provide the mapping between the current and / or neighboring carrier frequencies and MBS Frequency Selection Area Identities (FSAI) , which is only for MBS broadcast service.■ a new dedicated SIB for provide MBS assisting information as discussed in this applicant, SIBxx . xx is integer number● In MCCH message (this message is carried in physical downlink shared channel PDSCH) . e.g., at least one of MBSBroadcastConfiguration message or MBSMulticastConfiguration message or new message specified to provide MBS assisting information as discussed in this applicant.In one example, UE first receives SIB20 to obtain scheduling information for reception of configuration for MBS broadcast, and further UE will take into account its interests, the starting time of MBS service and UE’s location to select MBS broadcast service to receive MCCH message to decide whether to receive the MTCH. For example, if UE’s location is outside the intended MBS service based on the received MBS assisting information in MCCH message, UE can decide not to receive (refrain from receiving) the corresponding MTCH message for the MBS service.● In RRC layer signaling to UE, e.g., via NAS (Non-Access-Stratum) message, or via RRC messages● In paging message● In short message● In MTCH message● In physical layer signaling, e.g., by indication included in DCI● In MAC layer signaling, e.g., by MAC CE (Control Element) ,● In group signaling, e.g., can be existing RRC message or new RRC message for MBS assisting information delivered to UEs within a group.● In user service description (USD) signalingCombination of at least one of above signaling methods are also possible. For example, SIB20 can be used to provide mapping between MBS broadcast service coverage and current and / or neighboring cell and / or associated frequency while the neighboring cell list can be provided in MCCH signaling.ISSUE 1: CONTENT OF THE MBS ASSISTING INFORMATIONDepending on the detailed content of MBS assisting information, the condition for UE to decide whether MBS is allowed and how UE behaves could be different, including the detailed signaling to be used may be different as well, which will be discussed in detail in each embodiment given.The MBS assisting information of step 1 can include at least one of information relevant to MBS service area (possible terminology may be intended / target / allowed MBS service area) , satellite information or information to associate the MBS service area with the MBS session (e.g., broadcast frequency, identity to identify MBS session) , which includes at least one of below information:● An indication to indicate MBS service has no restrictions for UE or in another wording, an indication to indicate an MBS service is not location dependent.● An indication to indicate whether UE is to use its location information as one of the factors to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not. In one example, it is determined based on the value of the indication, e.g., when this indication has value 1 it means UE shall use its location information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not; while value zero indicates UE is not expected to use its location information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not, or vice versa. In another example, presence of the indication can be seen as a positive indication that the UE shall use its location information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not, while absence of the indication can be seen as a negative indication that the UE is not expected to use its location information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not. In a third example a disable indication can be used to disable UE from using its location information to determine whether MBS service is allowed for reception or not, which means if the disable indication does not present, UE assumes it shall use its location information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not. The methods to determine whether an MBS service is allowed based on UE location can refer to methods discussed in this applicant.● An indication to indicate whether UE shall use its used NW information (e.g., RPLMN or Selected PLMN or EPLMN or selected standalone non-public network SNPN or others) as one of the factors to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not. In one example, it is determined based on the value of the indication, e.g., when this indication has value 1 it means UE shall use its used NW information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not; while value zero indicates UE is not expected to use its used NW information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not, or vice versa. In another example, presence of the indication can be seen as a positive indication that the UE shall use its used NW information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not, while absence of the indication can be seen as a negative indication that the UE is not expected to use its used NW information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not. In a third example a disable indication can be used to disable UE from using used NW information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not, which means if the disable indication does not present, UE assumes it shall use its used NW information to determine whether an MBS service is allowed for reception or not. The methods to determine whether an MBS service is allowed based on UE used NW information can refer to methods discussed in this applicant.● Country information, which indicates one or more country the MBS service is allowed. The MBS type can be at least one of MBS broadcast or MBS multicast.● Tracking Area information, which indicates one or more tracking areas the MBS service is expected to be provided. The MBS type can be at least one of MBS broadcast or MBS multicast. In some examples, each tracking area can be identified by a tracking area code or by a tracking area identity.● Geographical coverage information, which indicates one or more geographical coverage that the MBS service is available / allowed.● TN cell information, which can include at least one of TN cell identities or the mapping between TN cell identity and MBS service. The usage of TN cell identity is similar to rely on geographical coverage; the difference is that UE derive the geographical areas of MBS service by the TN cell coverage associated the cell identified by the TN cell identities. While the rest is similar to what have been discussed in examples using geographical area information. In this option, the geographical area of each MBS equals to the total coverage of each coverage of each TN cells associated to the MBS service. In some examples, the provided TN cell is only used to derive the geographical coverage of the MBS service, it doesn’t necessarily indicate that the MBS service is available in the TN cells.● MBS Area identities. Each MBS area identity identifies a geographical coverage of MBS service, which can be overlapped or non-overlapped. In some examples it can be MBS Area session ID. Or in some examples, it can be a new identity defined.● Mapping between MBS area identity / MBS service area / MBS geographical coverage to MBS services. Based on the associated MBS area identities UE can derive the MBS service’s geographical coverage. For example, it can be the total coverage of each coverage identified by the MBS area identities of the MBS service. The mapping between the MBS area identity and MBS service can include at least one of below options:■ One MBS geographical coverage is associated to one or more MBS session. This option can further include at least one of below implementation option:◆ An MBS area identity can be used to identify one MBS geographical coverage and is included in each MBS session configuration, to link the MBS geographical coverage to one MBS service◆ An MBS area identity can be used to identify one MBS geographical coverage and an MBS service identity can be used to identify an MBS session, then an MBS area identity can be associated to a list of MBS service identity, to realize the association of MBS geographical coverage to one or more MBS service.■ One or more MBS geographical coverage is associated to one MBS session. This option can further include at least one of below implementation option:◆ One or more MBS area identities can be included in one MBS session configuration, and each MBS area identity can identify an MBS geographical coverage. Based on this, to link one MBS service to one or more sets of MBS geographical coverage.◆ An MBS area identity can be used to identify one MBS geographical coverage and an MBS service identity can be used to identify an MBS session, then a list of MBS geographical coverage identities can be associated to an MBS service identity, to realize the association of one or more MBS geographical coverage to one MBS service.● Satellite identity, where each satellite identity identifies a satellite and / or an information set for a satellite. The information set includes at least one of satellite ephemeris, satellite epochTime, common TA parameters, polarization parameters.● satellite ephemeris and associated epochTime● Common TA parameters and associated epochTime● NTN types, which includes a geostationary orbit GEO, low earth orbit LEO, GSO (geosynchronous orbit) , NGSO (Non-GSO) , medium earth orbit MEO, earth moving, earth fixed, quasi-earth fixed.● Time information associated to the MBS assisting information, which includes at least one of below information:■ A start time which includes when the MBS assisting information becomes valid, which can be implemented based on at least one of below options:◆ In one example, the start time can be a past or current or future time. In some examples, when epochTime is provided, the start time can be the time indicated by epochTime.◆ A time offset information from a start timing, which can be at least a positive or a negative value. In one example, the time MBS assisting information becomes valid is the time that equals to start timing minus the time offset. In another example the time MBS assisting information becomes valid is the time that equals to start timing plus the time offset. In one example, the start time can be epochTime, which can be at least a positive or negative value. In this example the time MBS assisting information becomes valid is the time equals to epochTime plus the time offset. In another example, the time MBS assisting information becomes valid is the time equals to epochTime minus the time offset.■ A time duration, which indicates how long the MBS assisting information is considered as valid. The starting time to count the duration can be at least the start time as discussed in above.■ Indication to indicate whether UE can provide the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW. In one example, it is determined based on the value of the indication, e.g., when this indication has value 1 it means UE can provide the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW; while value zero indicates UE cannot provide the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW, or vice versa. In another example, presence of the indication can be seen as a positive indication that the UE can provide the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW, while absence of the indication can be seen as a negative indication that UE cannot provide the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW. In a third example a disable indication can be used to disable UE from providing the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW, which means if the disable indication does not present, UE assumes it can provide the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW. In some examples, the indication as discussed here can be included in system information. In some examples, UE provides the interested MBS service areas the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW via MBS Interest Indication procedure.● Mapping between MBS assisting information and MBS session, which includes at least one of below options:■ One MBS assisting information is associated to one or more MBS session. This option can further include at least one of below implementation option:◆ An MBS assisting information identity can be used to identify one set of MBS assisting information (include one or more MBS assisting information) and is included in each MBS session configuration, to link the MBS assisting information to one MBS service◆ An MBS assisting information identity can be used to identify one set of MBS assisting information (include one or more MBS assisting information) and an MBS service identity can be used to identify an MBS session, then an MBS assisting information identity can be associated to a list of MBS service identities, to realize the association of MBS assisting information to one or more MBS service.◆ A set of MBS assisting information (include one or more MBS assisting information) can be included in each MBS session configuration, to link the MBS assisting information to one MBS service◆ A set of MBS assisting information (include one or more MBS assisting information) can includes one or more MBS service identities (e.g., TMGIs) , to link the MBS assisting information to one or more MBS services.■ One or more MBS assisting information is associated to one MBS session. These options can further include at least one of below implementation option:◆ One or more MBS assisting information identities can included in one MBS session configuration, and each MBS assisting information can identify a set of MBS assisting information (include one or more MBS assisting information) . Based on this, to link one MBS service to one or more sets of MBS assisting information.◆ An MBS assisting information identity can be used to identify one set of MBS assisting information (include one or more MBS assisting information) and an MBS service identity can be used to identify an MBS session, then a list of MBS assisting information identities can be associated to an MBS service identity, to realize the association of one or more MBS assisting information to one MBS service.◆ A list of MBS assisting information sets (each MBS assisting information set includes one or more MBS assisting information) is included in each MBS session configuration, to link one or more MBS assisting information to one MBS service◆ A list of MBS assisting information sets (each MBS assisting information set includes one or more MBS assisting information) is included for one MBS service identity (e.g., TMGIs) , to link one or more MBS assisting information to one MBS services.In this applicant, there are multiple places mentioning that an MBS service can be identified by MBS service identity. In some examples, an MBS service can be identified by one MBS service identity, e.g., TMGI. In some examples an MBS service can be identified by combination of multiple MBS service identities, e.g., by TMGI and g-RNTI (group-radio network temporary identifier) . The g-RNTI is a group RNTI assigned for an MBS service identified by a TMGI. In above description of mapping between MBS assisting information and MBS service, the MBS assisting information can be at least one of the MBS assisting information discussed in this applicant, e.g., country information, tracking area information, geographical coverage information, TN cell information, satellite information, ephemeris information, NTN types, common TA, time information etc.Some examples of above-mentioned MBS assisting information content are discussed in detail as below:Embodiment 0: Indication to remove / enable the restrictionAn indication to indicate MBS service has no restrictions for UE or in another wording, an indication to indicate an MBS service is not location dependent. Or in another words, an indication to indicate whether the MBS assisting information is used by the UE for MBS service management (e.g., select / release / suspend the MBS service) .In one implementation, this indication is a one-bit indication with value 1 or 0, where value 1 indicates that MBS service is allowed for all UEs can receive the MBS data, there is no restrictions, otherwise it is set to zero, or vice versa. In another implementation, presence of this indication can serve similar purpose, e.g., presence of this indication indicates that MBS service is allowed for all UEs can receive the MBS data, there is no restrictions, otherwise it is absent. In one implementation, this indication is a one-bit indication with value 1 or 0, where value 1 indicates that MBS assisting information is used by the UEs for MBS service management (e.g., select / release / suspend the MBS service) , otherwise it is set to zero to indicate the MBS assisting information is not used by the UE, or vice versa. In another implementation, presence of this indication can serve similar purpose, e.g., presence of this indication indicates that MBS service is used by the UEs, otherwise it is absent to indicate the MBS assisting information is not used by the UE. In some examples, the indication can be common for all MBS assisting information provided, or in another example the indication can be introduced and set separately for each type of MBS assisting information. Or in another example, UE based on presence of other MBS assisting information (e.g., country information, tracking area information) to knows the MBS service associated to the provided MBS assisting information is applicable for the areas / frequencies / satellites indicated by the assisting information, and UE needs to take the assisting information account when selecting the MBS service.Embodiment 1: Examples where MBS assisting information includes country informationSub-issue 1: Content detailsCountry information, which indicates the country the MBS service is available. The MBS type can be at least one of MBS broadcast or MBS multicast. The country information includes at least one of below information:Country identifier (e.g., country code) to identify a country where the MBS service is allowed / available,Mapping between country information and MBS service,One or more geographical areas within the country that MBS service is allowed / available,A maximum number of countries associated to MBS service,For country identifier, in one implementation, the country information delivered to UE can be one or more country codes, where each country code is associated to a country. The country code can be fixed or configurable. At least one of below options can be considered for implementation:- Mobile country codes (MCC) , which identifies one country uniquely as defined in 3GPP standard TS 23.003. It consists of three integer digits.- Mobile Mobile Network Code (MNC) consisting of two or three digits for 3GPP network applications. The MNC identifies the home PLMN of the mobile subscription within its country of domicile, or it identifies together with MCC and NID (Network Identifier) of SNPN (stand-alone non-public network) . The length of the MNC (two or three digits) depends on the value of the MCC. A mixture of two and three digit MNC codes within a single MCC area is not recommended and is outside the scope of this specification.- Country name abbreviation, where each abbreviation uniquely identifies one country.- Country code defined by ISO 3166In some examples, combination of some of the above may be considered, e.g., a combination of MCC and MNC can be used to indicate the area where the MBS service is available / allowed.For mapping between country information and MBS service, each country information can be associated to one or more MBS service. To achieve this purpose at least one of below signaling options can be considered:Each MBS service can be associated to one or more country (e.g., a list of country codes) . For example, an MBS service can be identified by an identifier (e.g., TMGI or TMGI+g-RNTI) , and each MBS service identified by an identifier can be linked to one or more countries codes, where each country codes identifying a country.In one implementation, a list of allowed country (s) for MBS service for a cell can be provided, and a bitmap indicating allowed countries for an MBS service is introduced, where each bit of the bitmap indicates whether the country indicated in the allowed country list is allowed / available for the MBS service. The bit sets to 1 to indicate the MBS is allowed / available for the country or sets to zero to indicate the MBS is not allowed / available for the country, or vice versa.Each country information can be associated to one or more MBS service. For example, for each country provided it can be associated to one or more identity identifying an MBS session. For example, each country can be associated to one or more TMGIs. The TMGI is used to identify an MBS session.One or more geographical areas within the country that MBS service is allowed / available allows to indicate MBS service area with a finer granularity than a country. In some examples, to allow further indicating a geographical area within a country, country information can be used in combination with additional geographical coverage information, which includes at least one of below information:Country information together with one or more tracking information as discussed in embodiment 2.Country information together with one or more geographical coverage as discussed in embodiment 3 or embodiment 4.Country information together with one or more mobile network codes (MNC) . The MNC is used to identify a list of network operators within a country.When used in combination with additional information as discussed above, below rules can be considered for UE to decide the availability of an MBS service based on the country information:In one example, UE consider an MBS is allowed to receive / join when all conditions are fulfilled. For example, when MNCs are provided together with country information, UE consider an MBS service as available / allowed when UE’s geographical location is within the country associated with the MBS service and is served by operator identified by the MNC associated with the MBS or is served by equivalent operator identified by the MNC associated with the MBS service. Here, equivalent operator means the operator identified by the MNC associated with the MBS service is considered as equivalent as the operator currently served the UE.In another example UE consider an MBS is allowed to receive / join when either of the conditions are fulfilled. For example, when MNCs are provided together with country information, UE consider an MBS service as available / allowed when either UE’s geographical location is within the country associated with the MBS service or UE is served by operator identified by the MNC associated with the MBS or is served by equivalent operator identified by the MNC associated with the MBS service. Here, equivalent operator means the operator identified by the MNC associated with the MBS service is considered as equivalent as the operator currently served the UE.A maximum number of countries associated to MBS service, which can be presented by an integer number. In one implementation, the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service can be defined for a cell. In another implementation, the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service can be defined for an MBS service for a cell. In another implementation the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service can be defined for a UE. In another implementation the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service can be defined for an MBS service for a UE.Sub-issue 2: UE determination on whether MBS service is allowedWhen country information of MBS service is provided, UE can be based on at least one of below options to decide whether an MBS service is allowed:● Option 1: Based on UE’s geographical location. In this option, an MBS service is considered as allowed for UE when UE’s location is within a country that is included in the country information (e.g., country list) associated with the MBS. When the MBS is considered as allowed / available for the UE, the UE can receive the MBS broadcast data or UE can request to receive multicast data.● Option 2: Based on UE’s registered or selected NW and UE’s location. Different implementations as given in below examples can be considered:◆ In one example, UE is registered in a PLMN for a country A, identified by MCC. In this option, an MBS service is considered as allowed for UE when the country identified by the MCC of UE’s RPLMN is included in the country information (e.g., country list) associated with the MBS and UE’s location is within the country that is included in the country information associated with the MBS. The country information derived based on MCC and the country information derived by UE location could be the same or different. A typical use case could be at EU, e.g., a Spanish user can roam to France while still serves by Spanish operators. When an MBS service provider provides MBS service over at least Spain and France, the Spanish user terminal is allowed to receive the MBS service when roaming to France. In this example, the country information associated to the MBS service could include Spanish and France, the MCC of UE’s RPLMN is Spain and its location is in France, which fulfills the specified rules, therefore UE consider the MBS service is available / allowed for the UE to join.◆ In another example, EPLMN can be considered. An MBS service is considered as allowed for UE when at least one of the countries identified by the MCC of UE stored EPLMN is part of the country associated with the MBS and UE’s location is within the country that is part of the country associated with the MBS. The country information derived based on MCC and the country information derived by UE location could be the same or different.◆ In yet another example, an MBS service is considered as allowed for a UE when either of below conditions is fulfilled:■ Cond1: UE location is within the country associated with the MBS.■ Cond2: The country information derived based on MCC of UE registered or selected PLMN is one of the countries associated with the MBS.◆ In a fourth example, an MBS service is considered as allowed for a UE when either of below conditions is fulfilled:■ Cond1: UE location is within the country associated with the MBS.■ Cond2: The country information derived based on MCC of at least one of the UE EPLMN is one of the countries associated with the MBS.● Option 3: Based on UE’s registered or selected NW type. Different implementations as given in below examples can be considered:◆ In one example, UE is registered in a PLMN for a country A, identified by the MCC included in the RPLMN. In this option, an MBS service is considered as allowed for UE when the country identified by the MCC of UE’s RPLMN is included in the country information (e.g., country list) associated with the MBS◆ In another example, EPLMN can be considered. An MBS service is considered as allowed for UE when at least one of the countries identified by the MCC of UE stored EPLMN is part of the country associated with the MBS.In yet another example, Selected PLMN can be considered. An MBS service is considered as allowed for UE when the country identified by the MCC of UE’s selected PLMN is included in the country information (e.g., country list) associated with the MBS. In some examples, when UE operates in Non-Public Network (e.g., NPN) , the registered PLMN can be replaced by registered SNPN identity or selected SNPN identity, and applies the same rules as discussed in above.Sub-issue 3: Signaling options and example ASN. 1As discussed in issue 0 in the common procedure part, the country information can be delivered to UE in at least one of below methods: system information, dedicated RRC message, NAS message, MCCH message, MTCH message, in MAC layer signaling, in physical layer signaling, in paging message or in group signaling. Below gives some examples of how such information can be delivered to UE, assuming the country code used to identify a country is MCC code, and the identifier used to identify an MBS session is TMGI. But please noted that other country codes or identifier to identify an MBS service is also possible, e.g., country abbreviation as defined in ISO standards, or MBS service identity can be TMGI + g-RNTI.ASN. 1 example to indicate country information. Example using list may be as follows.In one example the MBS country list (e.g., mbs-AllowedCountryList) can be defined, which contains multiple entries, each entry includes a country identifier identifying a country.Example ASN. 1 is given as below:In this example, the MBS country list is defined as mbs-AllowedCountryList, maxAllowedCountry is the maximum number of entries defined, which is an integer number. For above example, the country information can be at least one of MCC, country abbreviation, or other country identity defined. In case MCC is used, MCC consists of three integers, each integer can be selected from zero to 9. Example is given as below:Examples when an MBS service is associated to one or more country codesExample a when the country codes is provided within MCCH messageMBSBroadcastConfiguration messageA. Examples when an MBS service is associated to one or more country codes Example a when the country codes is provided within MCCH messageMBSBroadcastConfiguration messageIn this example, a list of allowed country, identified by a list of MCC codes, is given for an MBS session in MBSBroadcastConfiguration message carried in MCCH logical channel. In this signaling structure, the legacy MBS session list (mbs-SessionInfoList-r17) included in the UE contains MBS identifier, and the entries of (mbs-SessionInfoList-r19 is one-to-one mapped to the entries of mbs-SessionInfoList-r17 in order, therefore UE can map the allowed country list to each MBS service, and derives the mapping between each MBS session and the allowed country list. Therefore, UE can decide whether the MBS service is allowed / available based on this MBS assisting information and / or UE location / UE used NW as discussed in above session.Here, maxAllowedCountryMBS is the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service provided in the cell. Which is an integer number.Example b when the country codes is provided in a system information blockIn below example, a SIBxx containing MBS assisting information to assist MBS service selection is introduced. In this example the MBS assisting information is a list of country where the MBS service is allowed / available. In other example, other SIBs can be considered, e.g., SIB1, SIB19, SIB20, SIB21, SIB25 etc.In this example the allowed country list for an MBS service is optional provided. In another example it can be mandatory provided. In this signaling design, the list of country associated to one or more MBS service contains multiple of entries, for each entry, an MBS service identified by a TMGI is associated to a list of countries identified by MCC. maxAllowedCountryMBS is the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service provided in the cell.Noticed that although the example is given for a new SIB (system information block) , the list of allowed country for one or more MBS service as given in above example can be carried in other SIBs, e.g., SIB1, SIB19, SIB20 , SIB21, SIB25 etc.Examples when a country code is associated to one or more MBS servicesExample a when the country codes is provided in a system information blockIn below example, SIBxx is a new SIB used to provide MBS assisting information. In other example, other SIBs can be considered, e.g., SIB1, SIB19, SIB20, SIB21, SIB25 etc. SIBxx contains MBS assisting information to assist MBS service selection. In this example the MBS assisting information is a list of country where the MBS service is allowed / available.In this example the allowed country list for an MBS service is optional provided. In another example it can be mandatory provided. In this signaling design, the list of country associated to one or more MBS service contains multiple of entries, for each entry, a country identified by a MCC is associated to a list of MBS services identified by TMGI. Each country is identified by a MCC code, and each MBS session is identified by a TMGI.maxAllowedCountryMBS is the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service provided in the cell. maxNrofMBS-Session indicate the maximum number of MBS session supported in the cell. Noticed that although the example is given for a new SIB, the list of allowed country for one or more MBS service as given in above example can be carried in other SIBs, e.g., SIB1, SIB19, SIB20 , SIB21, SIB25 etc.Example based on allowed country list and a bitmap of allowed country for an MBS serviceCombination of signaling options discussed in common procedure part can be considered in some examples, which may allow further UE power saving and a flexible management of MBS service with respect to the actual deployment. For example, an NTN could over multiple country information, and provide different MBS service on different frequencies for different countries.In some examples, a list of allowed country information for MBS service per cell (serving cell or neighboring cell) can be provided over system information (e.g., SIB20 or a new SIB) . And further in MCCH message (either for MBS broadcast or MBS multicast) , a bitmap of country information can be provided to each MBS service which indicates the countries associated with the MBS. In this example, each bit of the bitmap correspondent to the country list in system information in order, whether the bit is set to 1 to indicate that the country is associated to the MBS service while the bit is set to zero indicates that the country is not associated to the MBS service, or vice versa. In case a country is associated to the MBS service, which indicates the MBS service is allowed / available for the country. The benefits of such methods could be, when UE decodes system information (e.g. SIB20) carrying the MBS assisting information and found out based on the list, it is not allowed to receive the MBS service in current cell, UE will skip further decoding of the scheduling information for received the corresponding MBS service, which can save some UE power consumption.To simplify the description, in below example, interpretation of the allowed country information of MBS service for the serving cell is based on presence of the allowed country list (e.g. mbs-AllowedCountryList) and the bitmap of allowed country (e.g., mtch-AllowedCountry) . The terminology used is only an example, other terminology could be possible. Also, the bitmap of allowed country associated to MBS session is presented as mtch-AllowedCountry, but the terminology used is only an example, other terminology could be possible. There are different options for signaling the two information to UE which is summarized in below table.Below is an ASN. 1 example of the example case 1 assuming the system information to provide a list of countries MBS service is available / allowed in a cell is SIB20, but it can also be a new SIB or other SIBs defined in standards (e.g., SIB1, SIB19, SIB21 etc. ) .- SIB20SIB20 contains the information required to acquire the MCCH / MTCH configuration for MBS broadcast.SIB20 information elementmaxAllowedCountryMBS is the maximum number of countries associated to MBS service provided in the cell. Which is an integer number.- MBSBroadcastConfigurationThe MBSBroadcastConfiguration message contains the control information applicable for MBS broadcast services transmitted via broadcast MRB.Signaling radio bearer: N / ARLC-SAP: UMLogical channel: MCCHDirection: Network to UEMBSBroadcastConfiguration messageEmbodiment 2: examples where MBS assisting information includes tracking area informationSub-issue 1: Content detailsTracking Area information, which indicates one or more tracking areas the MBS service is available / allowed. The MBS type can be at least one of MBS broadcast or MBS multicast. Specially for NTN, the TAC can be used to identify a fixed geographical area. The mapping between TAC and the fixed geographical area is done by NW. In different implementations, the mapping maybe decided by CN or NG-RAN. Currently the mapping relationship is not known by UE. Therefore, it is possible to make use of tracking area information to assist UE to select the MBS service. To achieve this purpose, at least one of below options can be considered:● Opt1: One or more allowed tracking areas associated to MBS service, and / or the mapping between the geographical area and tracking areas is provided to UE. Based on the received information, UE can derive that the geographical coverage the MBS service is available. In one example, UE consider the MBS is available in the geographical areas of identified by the TAs associated to the MBS. For example, UE knows from the mapping between the geographical area and tracking areas that a TA1 corresponds to geographical area 1, TA2 corresponds to geographical area 2, TA3 corresponds to geographical area 3, and an MBS is associated to TA1 and TA3, then UE can determine that the MBS service is available in geographical area 1 and 3.Furthermore, UE based on comparison of the coverage the MBS service is available and UE’s location / UE’s NW to decide whether an MBS is available / allowed for the UE.● Opt2: One or more allowed tracking areas associated to MBS service for a cell is provided together with a list of allowed tracking area for a UE, the UE based on the comparison of the two tracking area information received to decide whether an MBS is available / allowed for the UE.For above options (opt1 / 2) , at least one or more below options can be used to identify the tracking areas:■ Option 1: the tracking areas can be identified by one or more Tracking Area Codes (TACs) .■ Option 2: The tracking areas can be identified by one or more Tracking Area Identities (TAIs) . Each TAI consists of one PLMN identity and one TAC.For both options in order to allow UE to understand the allowed tracking areas associated to MBS service, the mapping between MBS service and tracking areas is needed to be defined and signaled, which can be delivered to UE in at least one of below options:■ Option 1: One or more TACs can be configured for an MBS service. The MBS service can be identified by identifier, e.g., TMGI.■ Option 2: One or more TAIs can be configured for an MBS service. The MBS service can be identified by identifier, e.g., TMGI.■ Option 3: Each tracking area identified by one TAC can be configured with one or more MBS services / sessions. For example, in case MBS service / sessions is identified by a TMGI, then each tracking area can be configured with one or more TMGIs.■ Option 4: Each tracking area identified by one TAI can be configured with one or more MBS services / sessions. For example, in case MBS service / sessions is identified by a TMGI, then each tracking area can be configured with one or more TMGIs.For option 1, the mapping between the geographical area and tracking areas is needed to be signaled to UE, which can be delivered in at least one of below options:■ Option 1: One or more TACs can be configured for the geographical area.■ Option 2: One or more TAIs can be configured for the geographical area.■ Option 3: Each tracking area identified by one TAC can be configured with one or more the geographical areas.■ Option 4: Each tracking area identified by one TAI can be configured with configured with one or more the geographical areas.For above discussed options, each geographical area can be presented by at least one of below options:◆ Option 1: A circular area presented by center (origin) coordinates and a radius◆ Option 2: An ellipse-shape area presented by origin coordinates, a semi-major axis of length r1 oriented at angle A (0 to 180°) measured clockwise from north and a semi-minor axis of length r2. An example of the uncertainty ellipse is depicted in FIG. 5.◆ Option 3: A polygon shape, the minimum number of points allowed is 3. A maximum number of points can be defined , e.g., in some examples the maximum allowed point is 15. The points shall be connected in the order that they are given (e.g., A to E in FIG. 6) . A connecting line is defined as the line over the ellipsoid joining the two points and of minimum distance (geodesic) . The last point is connected to the first. The list of is based on a number of conditions:- a connecting line shall not cross another connecting line;- two successive points must not be diametrically opposed on the ellipsoid.The described area is situated to the right of the lines with the downward direction being toward the Earth's center and the forward direction being from a point to the next.◆ Option 4: An area identity identifying a geographical area. In some examples, the geographical area can be presented by a geometry shape as discussed in above options.Sub-issue 2: UE determination on whether MBS service is allowedBased on Opt 1 (paragraph
[0129] )For option 1, when tracking area information associated with MBS service is provided, UE implementation can be based on at least one of below options to decide whether an MBS service is allowed:Option 1: Based on UE’ geographical location, e.g., location conditionIn this option, UE first decide the geographical coverage of each MBS service based on the TAs associated with each MBS service and the mapping between TAs and geographical areas. After which, UE compares its geographical location with the derived geographical coverage of MBS service, UE consider an MBS service as allowed / available for the UE when its location is inside the geographical coverage of the MBS service, otherwise UE consider the MBS service as not allowed / available.Option 2: Based on UE’s RPLMN / Selected PLMN or EPLMN if available, e.g., NW conditionIn this option, if the TA (TAI or TAC) included in the PLMN of UE is included in the TAs (TAI or TAC) associated with the MBS service, UE consider an MBS service as allowed / available for the UE, otherwise UE consider the MBS service as not allowed / available. Here, the PLMN of UE can be at least one of RPLMN, selected PLMN or EPLMN. In some examples, when UE uses other NW type, e.g., when UE uses NPN, the above discussed PLMN identity can be replaced by registered SNPN identity or equivalent SNPNs, using the same rules as discussed above.Option 3: Based on UE’s PLMN and / or UE’s geographical locationIn this option, UE determine an MBS service is available based on the comparison outcome of both UE’s PLMN and / or UE’s geographical location. In one implementation, UE consider an MBS service is available / allowed when both location condition and NW condition as discussed in above option1 / 2 is fulfilled, otherwise UE consider the MBS service is not available. The PLMNs can be registered PLMN or selected PLMN or EPLMNs. In some examples, when UE uses other NW type, e.g., when UE uses NPN, the above discussed PLMN identity can be replaced by registered SNPN identity or equivalent SNPNs, using the same rules as discussed above.In another implementation, UE consider an MBS service is available / allowed when either of the location condition or NW condition as discussed in above option1 / 2 is fulfilled, otherwise UE consider the MBS service is not available (i.e., when neither condition is fulfilled) .Based on Opt2 (paragraph
[0130] )For option 2, a list of tracking areas associated to MBS services for a cell can be provided in system information, which indicates one or more MBS service available in the cell, where each MBS service can be associated to one or more tracking areas using options discussed above. Furthermore, the UE or (a group of UEs) can be assigned with one or more tracking areas that it is allowed to receive MBS service (e.g., allowed TA list for MBS) . When received in dedicated signaling and / or in group signaling the allowed TA list for MBS, UE will use both information received in system information and the dedicated / group signaling to decide whether an MBS is allowed / available for the UEs. For example, if at least one of the TA associated with an MBS is included in the allowed TA list for MBS a UE received, the UE consider the MBS as allowed / available, otherwise UE consider the MBS as not allowed / available. i.e., if an MBS service is not associated to any TAs included in the allowed TA list for MBS for the UE, UE consider the MBS service is not allowed for the UE.When determining an MBS service is available, UE can perform actions as discussed in the common procedure part, e.g., to acquire the scheduling information for the MBS service, receive the MBS data or request to receive the MBS data. When determining an MBS service is not allowed, UE can perform actions as discussed in the common procedure part, e.g., release the MBS session. An example is shown in FIG. 7. In the signal exchange diagram 700, UE receives tracking areas associated to the MBS in the cell in a system information message, transmitted by the NW. UE also receives allowed tracking list for MBS for the UE in dedicated or group signaling, transmitted by the NW. Based on the information, UE decides whether to receive or release an MBS service.Sub-issue 3: Signaling options and example ASN. 1As discussed in issue 0 in the common procedure part, the tracking area information can be delivered to UE in at least one of below methods: system information, dedicated RRC message, NAS message, MCCH message, MTCH message, in MAC layer signaling , in physical layer signaling, in paging message or in group signaling. Below gives some examples of how such information can be delivered to UE, assuming the MBS identifier used to identify an MBS service is TMGI. But please noted that other identifier to identify an MBS service is also possible , e.g., based on TMGI and g-RNTI.Based on Opt 1In this option TAs of MBS and the mapping between TAs and geographical area is provided to UE.Examples to provide TAs of MBS informationa. One or more TAs is included in MBS session informationIn this example a list of identity identifying a TAs can be included for an MBS session, which indicates that TAs the MBS service, identified by MBS service identity, is available.Identity identifying a tracking area can be TAC or TAI.b. Example for TAIIn below example, the allowed TAs associated to MBS service is provided in MBSBroadcastConfiguration message. The same content can be included in other messages, e.g., MBSMulticastConfiguration message, or a message for deliver MBS assisting information from NW to UE. For example, when the NW is CN, it can be a NAS message, when the NW is NG-RAN nodes, it can be a RRC message.MBSBroadcastConfiguration messageHere, maxTAMBS is the maximum number of tracking areas for MBS service.When TAI is used, each TAI will include a TAC and a PLMN identity. In some examples, to further reduce signaling overhead, a possible implementation is to make the presence of PLMN identity in the TAI list optional. In this implementation, if the PLMN identity of an entry is the same as the PLMN included in previous entries, the PLMN identity is not included in the entry to save signaling overhead, and so on. By such implementation, when all TAIs included in the list shares the same PLMN, NW can only include the PLMN in the first entry. Seen from UE’s side, if the PLMN identity in one entry of the received TAI list is missing, UE assumes the PLMN identity has the same value as the PLMN identity included in the closest previous entry. This implementation can be used in all examples about tracking area identity (TAI) discussed in this applicant.● Example for TACWhen the tracking area is identified by TAC, the ASN. 1 coding for mbs-TAList can be as below. In this example the TA information associated to MBS service is included in MBSBroadcastConfiguration message. The same content can be included in other messages, e.g., MBSMulticastConfiguration message, or a message for deliver MBS assisting information from NW to UE. For example, when the NW is CN, it can be a NAS message, when the NW is NG-RAN nodes, it can be a RRC message.MBSBroadcastConfiguration messageHere, maxTAMBS is the maximum number of tracking areas for MBS service.c. One TAC is associated to one or more MBS service identity, each MBS session identity identifies an MBS sessionIn below example, SIBxx is a new SIB used to provide MBS assisting information. In other example, other SIBs can be considered, e.g., SIB1, SIB19, SIB20, SIB21, SIB25 etc. SIBxx contains MBS assisting information to assist MBS service selection. In this example the MBS assisting information is a list of tracking areas where the MBS service is allowed / available.In this example the allowed tracking area list for an MBS service is optional provided. In another example it can be mandatory provided. In this signaling design, the list of tracking areas associated to one or more MBS service contains multiple of entries, for each entry, a258an259 MBS service identified by a TMGI is associated to a list of TAs identified by tracking area identity. maxAllowedTAMBS is the maximum number of tracking areas associated to MBS service provided in the cell.Noticed that although the example is given for a new SIB, the list of allowed country for one or more MBS service as given in above example can be carried in other SIBs, e.g., SIB1, SIB19, SIB20 , SIB21, SIB25 etc. Similar to the example given before, in some examples the PLMN identity in TAI can be optional included, when absence UE consider the PLMN identity of the TAI as the PLMN identity included in the closest previous entry.In some examples, the TAIdentity included in each entry of mbs-AllowedTAList can be tracking area code (TAC) .Example to provide mapping between TAs and geographical areaIn one implementation, for security consideration, the mapping between TAs and geographical area is delivered to UE in NAS message. In another implementation it can be provided to UE in RRC message or via system information.Based on Opt 2In this option, a first list of tracking areas associated to MBS for the cell is provided to UE, where this information is common for UEs in the cell. The list associated to MBS for the cell includes the tracking areas information, and the mapping between the MBS and tracking areas. This information can be delivered to UE in at least one of system information or MCCH message. The signaling example as discussed in above option 1 can be considered.Furthermore, UE can receive from NW a second list of tracking areas allowed for MBS which indicates the tracking areas UE is allowed to receive MBS. The second list can include only tracking area information. Based on which UE can determine whether an MBS service is available / allowed for the UE to receive. The second TA list can be provided to UE from NW in at least one of RRC message, MAC layer signaling, paging message, group message (e.g., group paging or multicast message. ) . For above mentioned discussed signaling options, they can be provided to UE in a dedicated method or in group-based method. When dedicated method is used, UE can use UE-dedicated RNTI (e.g., C-RNTI) to monitor the scheduling information (e.g., physical downlink control channel PDCCH) for receiving the RRC message. When group signaling is used, UE can use group RNTI to monitor the scheduling information (e.g., PDCCH) for receiving the dedicated message. The group RNTI can be G-RNTI used for multicast, or new group-RNTI defined. In some examples, NW assigns the group RNTI takes into available UE location information at NW’s side.Below gives some signaling examples:Example when RRC message is usedAt least RRCReconfiguration message or new RRC message for MBS assisting information can be used to provide the second tracking area list to UE. When RRC message is used, an information element (IE) can be used to indicate the second list of tracking areas allowed for MBS which indicates the tracking areas UE is allowed to receive MBS.Example IE using TAI and TAC is given as below:Example information element based on TAI:Example information element based on TAC:Example when MAC layer signaling is usedIn this example a MAC CE can be defined to provide UE with a list of Tracking Areas where the MBS service is available for the UE. When provided, UE only consider the MBS service as available / allowed for reception when at least one TA indicated by the received MAC CE for the UE is associated to the MBS. The MAC CE for providing the tracking area list to UE can be at least one of below:- A MAC subheader only;- A MAC subheader and a MAC CE;The MAC subheader includes at least information to identify the MAC CE. The MAC CE and MAC subheader is octet aligned. It can be a fixed sized or variable sized MAC CE.The MAC subheader and MAC CE includes at least one of below fields:- LCID or eLCID: The Logical Channel ID field or the extended Logical Channel ID field identifies the type of the corresponding MAC CE.The LCID / eLCID can have a value from reserved values from at least one of below:Reserved LCID values from LCID for MBS multicast MCCH and MBS broadcast on DL-SCH.Reserved LCID values from one-octet eLCID for DL-SCHReserved LCID values from two-octet eLCID for DL-SCHReserved LCID values from LCID for DL-SCHRegardless which LCID type is used, the (e) LCID as discussed in this document has a value from reserve (e) LCID values, indicating it is MAC CE for the allowed tracking areas for the UE.For MBS broadcast, a logical channel is identified based on G-RNTI and LCID if the sameLCID is allocated for logical channels corresponding to different G-RNTIs.- L: The Length field indicates the length of the variable-sized MAC CE in bytes.- F: The Format field indicates the size of the Length field. The size of the F field is 1 bit. The value 0 indicates 8 bits of the Length field. The value 1 indicates 16 bits of the Length field;- LX: The LCID extension field indicates the use of extended LCID space. The size of the LX field is 1 bit. The LX field set to 1 indicates the use of Table 6.2.1-2c, otherwise R bit is present instead (i.e., set to 0) ;- R: Reserved bit, set to 0.- Tracking Area (TA) field, which indicates whether a tracking area provided in the allowed TA list for MBS for the cell is for the UE or not. Where each bit is to indicate in order (from the first to the last, or from the last to the first) , each TA entry provided in the TA list (e.g., in the system information) is for the UE or not. Each bit is set 1 when the TA is for the UE otherwise it is set to zero or vice versa. For example , the allowed TA list for MBS in the cell is provided, which contains 8 entries, where each entry includes on TA identity (e.g., TAI or TAC) associated to a tracking area, and a list of MBS service identity (e.g., TMGI) . First entry indicates TA1, second entry indicates TA2 and so on. And UE receives a MAC CE with RA field set as 10110000, which means TA1, TA3, TA4 is for the UE, and UE consider MBS associated to at least TA1, TA3. TA4 as available / allowed for the UE. Since the MAC is octet-aligned, in case the number of entries of provide allowed TA list for MBS in the cell is smaller than the TA fields, UE set the rest of TA fields as zero. The TA field used in FIG. 8 is only an example, other terminologies (e.g., Tracking Area Indication, tracking area code, tracking area identifier / identity) can also be used.Example for MAC CE with only subheaderIn one example (refer to FIG. 8, top syntax structure) , the LCID has a value from reserved LCID values from LCID for DL-SCH or from reserved LCID values from LCID for MBS multicast MCCH and MBS broadcast on DL-SCH , which indicates it is MAC CE for the allowed tracking areas for the UE.In one example (refer to FIG. 8 bottom syntax structure) , the eLCID has a value from reserved eLCID values for one-octet eLCID for DL-SCH, which indicates it is MAC CE for the allowed tracking areas for the UE.Example for MAC CE with MAC subheader and MAC CE of fixed sizeIn one example (refer to FIG. 9, top syntax structure) the TA field is carried in MAC CE payload. Below only gives an example the actual number of bits can be different, also depending on the number of bits of TA fields used, one or more R bits can be included to make sure the MAC CE payload is octet-aligned.The subheader to identify the fixed size MAC CE can be as given in the example referring to FIG. 9, bottom syntax structure. In an example (refer to FIG. 9, bottom syntax structure) , the LCID has a value from reserved LCID values from LCID for DL-SCH or from reserved LCID values from LCID for MBS multicast MCCH and MBS broadcast on DL-SCH , which indicates it is MAC CE for the allowed tracking areas for the UE.Example for MAC CE with MAC subheader and MAC CE of variable sizeIn one example (refer to FIG. 10, top syntax structure) the TA field is carried in MAC CE payload, which consists of N TA fields, can indicate 8*N identity for tracking area, N is an integer. Below only gives an example the actual number of bits can be different, also depending on the number of bits of TA fields used, one or more R bits can be included to make sure the MAC CE payload is octet-aligned.The subheader to identify the variable size MAC CE as given above can be as shown in FIG. 10, bottom syntax structure.In this example, the LCID has a value from reserved LCID values from LCID for DL-SCH or from reserved LCID values from LCID for MBS multicast MCCH and MBS broadcast on DL-SCH , which indicates it is MAC CE for the allowed tracking areas for the UE.Embodiment 3 based on geographical coverage informationSub-issue 1: Content detailsGeographical coverage information, which identifies one or more geographical areas the MBS service is available / allowed. The geographical coverage information can include at least one of below information:● Area identity. Each area identity is used to identify a geographical area. The area identity can be at least one of TN-AreaId-r18 (an identifier defined in SIB25 to indicate a TN coverage) , MBS area session ID or new defined identity used for identifying a geographical area.● Geographical areas indicated by geometry shapes which can include at least one of below information:■ Opt 1: A circular area presented by center (origin) coordinates and a radius■ Opt 2: An ellipse-shape area presented by origin coordinates, a semi-major axis of length r1 oriented at angle A (0 to 180 degrees) measured clockwise from north and a semi-minor axis of length r2.■ Opt 3: A polygon shape indicated by multiple points. The minimum number of points allowed is 3. A maximum number of points can be defined , e.g., in some examples the maximum allowed point is 15. The points shall be connected in the order that they are given. A connecting line is defined as the line over the ellipsoid joining the two points and of minimum distance (geodesic) . The last point is connected to the first. The list of points shall respect a number of conditions:- a connecting line shall not cross another connecting line;- two successive points must not be diametrically opposed on the ellipsoid.The described area is situated to the right of the lines with the downward direction being toward the Earth's center and the forward direction being from a point to the next.● Mapping between geographical areas and MBS service, which can include at least one of below mapping relationships:■ One geographical area is mapped to one or more MBS services◆ One area identity is associated to one or more MBS identities, where each MBS service identity is used to identity an MBS service. The MBS service identity can be TMGI.◆ One geographical area is associated to one or more MBS identities, where each MBS service identity is used to identity an MBS service. The MBS service identity can be TMGI. Each geographical areas can be indicated by geometry shapes as discussed in above options.■ One MBS service is mapped to one or more geographical areas.◆ One MBS service identity is associated to one or more area identities. Each area identity identifies a geographical area and each MBS service identity identifies an MBS service. In one example, the MBS service identity can be TMGI.◆ One MBS service identity is associated to one or more geographical areas. Each geographical areas can be indicated by geometry shapes as discussed in above options.For above discussed options, the geographical areas identified by different area identities can be non-overlapped or can be overlapped. For above discussed options, the MBS service identity can be other identity defined, e.g., can be TMGI and group-RNTI.Sub-issue 2: UE determination on whether MBS service is allowed● Option 1: Based on UE’ geographical location, e.g., location conditionIn this option, UE first decide the geographical coverage of each MBS service based on the received geographical area information. For example, when area identity is provided and an MBS service is associated to one or more area identities, UE considers the MBS service area is the total geographical areas identified by the area identities associated to the MBS service. E. g., MBS1 is associated to area identity 1, 2, 3, and area identity 1, 2, 3 corresponds to area 1, 2, 3. Then the geographical coverage of MBS service is area 1+area2+area 3.After which, UE compares its geographical location with the derived geographical coverage of MBS service, UE considers an MBS service as allowed / available for the UE when its location is inside the geographical coverage of the MBS service, otherwise UE considers the MBS service as not allowed / available.Sub-issue 3: Signaling options and example ASN. 1As discussed in the common part, there are multiple of options can be considered to provide UE with the MBS assisting information as discussed in above. Below gives some example implementations, which doesn’t exclude other possibilities as discussed in the common part.Example using SIB25Example 1 when one TN coverage is associated to multiple MBS serviceIn this example the SIB25 is used to provide the geographical coverage of MBS service, also reusing some existing IEs for indicating the TN coverage.SIB25 information elementExample 1 when one or more TN coverage is associated to one MBS serviceIn this example, the SIB25 is used to provide the geographical coverage of MBS service, also reusing some existing IEs for indicating the TN coverage.SIB25 information elementExample using new IEMBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfoThe IE MBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfo provides a list of MBS assisting information. This IE can be included in at least one of existing SIBs (e.g., SIB20 / SIB21 / SIB25 / SIB19 or new SIBs defined for provide MBS assisting information) or MCCH / MTCH messages or RRC messages or NAS messages or paging message.MBS-AssistingInfoList information elementThis mbs-assistintInfoList includes one to maximum maxAllowedAssistingInfoMBS entries, each entry includes one set of MBS assisting information indicated by mbs-assistingInfo. maxAllowedAssistingInfoMBS is an integer number, which specifies the maximum number of MBS assisting information supported.In this example the mbs-assistingInfo includes the geographical coverage information for MBS.For example, if country information is MCC code, then the mbs-assistingInfo in above example will be MCC. In this example, the mbs-SessionId-r19 is optionally presented. In some examples, the mbs-SessionId-r19 in above example is mandatorily presented. In this example the g-RNTI-r19 is optionally presented. In some examples the g-RNTI-r19 in above example is conditionally presented, e.g., it is mandatory presented for MBS multicast service otherwise it is absent.In this example the mbs-CoverageList including one or more geographical coverage is included for each MBS service. In yet another option, it is possible that the geographical coverage is the TN coverage provided in SIB25, where each TN coverage can be identified by an identity (i.e., TN-AreaId-r18 ) , and only the TN-AreaId-r18 are needed to be included for each MBS service. UE can refer to both SIB25 and the message carrying the MBS-AssistingInfoList IE to derive the geographical coverage of MBS service. Signaling example can be as below:The only update in this example is that the mbs-CoverageList IE includes TN identity (e.g., TN-AreaId-r18) used to identify TN coverage as signaled in SIB25, while the rest is as given as in previous example.Embodiment 4 based on combination of above discussed contentConsider different MBS service may have MBS service with different granularity (e.g., country-wise, tracking-area wise, cell-level-wise, etc. ) , and to allow flexible configuration and implementation methods, different signaling can be considered to support combined usage of one or multiple MBS assisting information as discussed above, which includes at least one of below implementation options:● Option1: One common Information Element (IE) is used to indicate the assisting information relevant to MBS service, which can be choice among at least one of one of the MBS assisting information discussed in this applicant (e.g., country information, tracking area information, TN coverage information etc. ) In this option, only one type of MBS assisting information is provided to UE, and UE will be based on the rules as discussed in this applicant for each type of MBS assisting information to decide whether an MBS is available / allowed or not.● Option 2: One common Information Element (IE) is used to indicate the assisting information relevant to MBS service, which can be sequence of at least one of the MBS assisting information discussed in this applicant (e.g., country information, tracking area information, TN coverage information etc. ) In this option, one or more types of MBS assisting information is provided to UE, the methods for UE to determine whether an MBS service is allowed / available includes at least one of below:■ UE consider an MBS service as available / allowed when all provided MBS assisting information condition associated to the MBS service is fulfilled. In this approach, UE decides whether an MBS is available / allowed or not for each type of MBS assisting information based on the rules as discussed in this applicant for each MBS assisting information.■ UE consider an MBS service as available / allowed when at least one provided MBS assisting information condition associated to the MBS service is fulfilled. In this approach, UE decides whether an MBS is available / allowed or not for each type of MBS assisting information based on the rules as discussed in this applicant for each MBS assisting information.The common IE as discussed above can be provided to UE from NW in at least one of below signaling options: system information, MCCH message, NAS message, RRC messages, paging message, short message, MTCH message, physical layer signaling, e.g., by indication included in DCI, MAC layer signaling (e.g., by MAC CE) , group signaling (e.g., can be based on existing RRC message or new RRC message for MBS assisting information delivered to UEs within a group) , or user service description (USD) signaling.Embodiment 5 based on common information elementIn this example, a common IE to provide the MBS assisting information can be introduced. The common IE can be included in multiple places / messages, e.g., at least one of SIBxs (e.g., SIB19, SIB20. SB21, SIB25 or new SIB for delivering MBS assisting information as discussed in this applicant. ) , or MBSBroadcastConfiguration, or MBSMulticastConfiguration messages, new message for delivering MBS assisting information or RRC messages (e.g., RRCReconfiguration) to allow deliver the information to UE in different methods to meet different requirement.Below give examples on including the MBS assisting information per MBS sessionExample a: MBS service identity is included.Example a, the mbs assisting information includes MBS service identity to identify MBS session, the MBS service type can be at least one of broadcast or multicast.- MBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfoThe IE MBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfo provides a list of MBS assisting information.MBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfo information elementThis mbs-assistintInfoList includes one to maximum maxAllowedAssistingInfoMBS entries, each entry includes one set of MBS assisting information indicated by mbs-assistingInfo. maxAllowedAssistingInfoMBS is an integer number, which specifies the maximum number of MBS assisting information supported.For different implementation, the mbs-assistingInfo can include the one or more assisting information as discussed in this applicant, e.g., it can be country information discussed in this applicant.For example, if country information is MCC code, then the mbs-assistingInfo in above example will be MCC.In this example, the mbs-SessionId-r19 in above example is optionally presented. In some examples, the mbs-SessionId-r19 in above example is mandatory presented. In some examples the g-RNTI-r19 in above example is conditional presented, e.g., it is mandatory presented for MBS multicast service otherwise it is absent.Example A: MBS service identity is not included.- MBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfoThe IE MBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfo provides a list of MBS assisting information.MBS-SessionInfoListAssistingInfo information elementThis mbs-assistintInfoList includes one to maximum maxAllowedAssistingInfoMBS entries, each entry includes one set of MBS assisting information indicated by mbs-assistingInfo. maxAllowedAssistingInfoMBS is an integer number, which specifies the maximum number of MBS assisting information supported.For different implementation, the mbs-assistingInfo can include the one or more assisting information as discussed in this applicant, e.g., it can be country information discussed in this applicant.For example, if country information is MCC code, then the mbs-assistingInfo in above example will be MCC.In some examples, the mbs-SessionId-r19 and g-RNTI-r19 is not included in the MBS assisting info information element. In such examples, entries of MBS assisting information list (e.g., MBS-AssistingInfoLis) are one to one mapped to the entries of MBS session information list (e.g., MBS-SessionInfoList or MBS SessionInfoListMulticas) , which is to guarantee the mapping between MBS assisting information and MBS service.In some examples, as discussed in above embodiment 4 the MBS assisting information can be a choice among the MBS assisting information discussed in this document to allow more flexibility to select suitable MBS assisting information to assist UE to decide how to select properly the MBS service.More details of above-mentioned information element are provided in the previous example explanations.In some examples, as discussed in above embodiment 4 the MBS assisting information can be one or more MBS assisting information among the MBS assisting information discussed in this applicant to allow more flexibility to select suitable MBS assisting information to assist UE to decide how to select properly the MBS service.More details of above-mentioned information element are provided in the previous example explanations.Embodiment 6 based on user service description (USD)An example of this embodiment is depicted in FIG. 11A.Sub-issue 1: Content detailsUE can obtain at least the geographical coverage of MBS service and / or an MBS area identity associated to the MBS service from USD. The USD can include other parameters necessary or beneficial for MBS service reception, which is not described here. The geographical coverage can be indicated by at least one of options discussed in this applicant to describe the geographical coverage. Each MBS area identity can be used to identity one geographical coverage of MBS service, each geographical coverage of MBS service can be overlapped or non-overlapped. NW can include at least one of NG-RAN / CN / Functional entities, e.g., NEF, AMF, UPF, SMF, MBS-AMF, MBS-UPF, MBS-SMF, OAM etc. NG-RAN nodes can include gNB , eNB, ng-eNB or other base stations, e.g., 6G base stations.Furthermore, UE can obtain from NW the MBS information for MBS service reception, which includes at least MBS area identity and associated MBS service. The MBS information can include other parameters necessary or beneficial for MBS service reception, which is not described here.The information of MBS can include at least one of below:● MBS area identity● Mapping between MBS area identity and MBS serviceThe details can be referred to the previous session discussed in issue 1.Based on the MBS area identity and associated geographical coverage in USD, and the association of MBS area identity and MBS service, UE can derive the geographical coverage of each MBS service. In one example, the MBS area identity discussed here can be MBS area session identity.Sub-issue 2: UE determination on whether MBS service is allowedAfter knowing the geographical coverage of each MBS service, UE can be based on its geographical location to determine whether the MBS service is available or not. For example, if UE is located inside the geographical coverage of an MBS service, the MBS service is considered as available / allowed for the UE, if UE is located outside the geographical coverage of an MBS service, the MBS service is considered as not available / allowed for the UE.Sub-issue 3: Signaling options and example ASN. 1As discussed in issue 0 in the common procedure part, the MBS information for MBS service reception, which includes at least MBS area identity and associated MBS service can be delivered to UE in at least one of below methods: system information, dedicated RRC message, NAS message, MCCH message, MTCH message, in MAC layer signaling , in physical layer signaling, in paging message or in group signaling. Below gives some examples of how such information can be delivered to UE, assuming the MBS identifier used to identify an MBS service is TMGI, or TMGI +g-RNTI (throughout the present document) . In various embodiments, other identifiers that sufficiently uniquely identify an MBS service is also possible.Example on one MBS session identified by MBS service identities is mapped to one or more MBS geographical coverage identified by MBS area identityThis mbs-AreaIdentityList includes one to maximum maxAreaIdentity-MBS entries, each entry includes one set of MBS area identities for an MBS session. maxAreaIdentity-MBS is an integer number, which specifies the maximum number of MBS area identities supported. In some examples the MBS-AreaIdentity can be an OCTET STRING, referring to MBS area identity defined in other standards. In some examples the MBS-AreaIdentity can be MBS session area identity.For alternative 1 as discussed above, in order to configure properly MBS assisting information (e.g., information relevant to MBS service area) to UE, NG-RAN and / or CN needs to be aware of the geographical coverage of the MBS service are provided. And as mentioned in the background information, currently such information is only available at NEF and MBS service provider. Therefore, enhancements need to be considered to allow transfer the MBS the geographical coverage of the MBS service to the MBS assisting information provided to UE. The detailed solutions are discussed in below section on Some additional details for Alt2.Embodiment 7: UE reporting interested MBSIn one example, when MBS assisting information has been provided to UE, UE can also indicate the interested MBS service area it would like to receive MBS service. UE can base on this and / or its interests and / or its movement, to report to NW the interested MBS service areas it intends to receive MBS service on, by including the interested MBS service area information in the MBS Interest Indication. In some examples, this behavior is controlled by NW indication, e.g., UE is allowed to report interested MBS service areas when NW has indicated this behavior is allowed, e.g., by the indication to indicate whether UE can provide the interested MBS service area the UE wants to receive the MBS service to NW as discussed in the content of MBS assisting information part. In some examples, the indication to allow UE to report interested MBS service areas can be included in system information, e.g., SIB1.Below gives an example when MBS area identity list has been provided to UE, where each MBS service area identity indicates a geographical area the MBS service is available. UE can be based on the message and / or its interests and / or its movement to report to NW the interested MBS service areas it intends to receive MBS service on by including the interested MBS service area identity in the MBS Interest Indication. The MBSInterestIndication is transmitted from UE to NW.MBSInterestIndication messageEmbodiment examples related to UE capabilityFor examples discussed above on receiving MBS assisting information and select MBS service-based on provided MBS assisting information could have additional requirement on UE. To allow UE to inform NW about its capability to support feature as discussed above, could be beneficial for NW to decide how to provide properly the MBS assisting information. In some examples, it is optional for UE to support acquire MBS assisting information (e.g., country information) and based on the MBS assisting information to select MBS service. The UE can send to NW via UE capability enquiry / report procedure to indicate its capability to support this feature.Considering there are different kinds of MBS assisting information discussed in this document, multiple embodiments are possible. For example, in one method, only one UE capability is used to indicate UE’s capability to use MBS assisting information; when UE indicates support of using MBS assisting information for MBS service selection, it supports all MBS assisting information introduced for this purpose.In another method, separate UE capability indications can be used to indicate which MBS assisting information UE supports to use it for MBS service selection. That is, per each MBS assisting information introduced for this purpose, there will be a different UE capability indication to allow UE to indicate whether it supports to use the MBS assisting information for MBS service selection.FIG. 11B depicts a procedure 1102 for UE capability information report. In a first step, NW may query the UE with a UE capability enquiry. In an ensuing response, the UE may provide UE capability in a UECapabilityInformation message to the NW. In some examples, the UE capability as discussed here can be reported to NG-RAN via an RRC message, as shown in FIG. 11B. In some examples the UE capability as discussed here can be reported to CN via NAS message.In some examples, it is optional for UE to support indicate its interested MBS reception areas to NW as discussed in this applicant. The UE can send to NW via UE capability enquiry / report procedure to indicate its capability to support this feature. In another example, the UE capability as discussed here can be reported to CN via an NAS message.Some additional details for Alt2As discussed in the common procedure part the NW providing MBS assisting information to UE can be at least one of NW can include at least one of NG-RAN / CN / Functional entities, e.g., NEF, AMF, UPF, SMF, MBS-AMF, MBS-UPF, MBS-SMF, OAM and etc. NG-RAN nodes can include gNB , eNB, ng-eNB or other base stations, e.g., 6G base stations..In existing system, NEF / AF can obtain from MBS service provider the geographical coverage of the MBS service area, which can be a list of cell identity or a list of TAI, or a list of geographical areas presented by geometry shapes, or a list of civic address. When received MBS service area is a list of geographical areas presented by geometry shapes, or a list of civic address, the NEF will transfer it to a list of cell identities or a list of TAIs covering the same / or approximately the same geographical coverage. To simplify the description, we will use external MBS service area info to refer to the geographical coverage information of MBS service area received from MBS service provider / AF.To allow transfer external MBS service area info into the MBS assisting information as discussed in this application, at least one of below options can be considered:● In a first option, CN transfers the received external MBS service area info to MBS assisting information and delivers this information to NG-RAN.● In a second option, CN can forward the received external MBS service area info to NG-RAN nodes, then NG-RAN nodes will transfer the external MBS service area info into MBS assisting information.● In a third option, CN can forward the received external MBS service area info to UE.● In a fourth option, CN transfers the received external MBS service area info to MBS assisting information and delivers this information to UEAll above options maybe possible , depending on different NW implementation.As discussed in previous sections of this document, the MBS assisting information can be at least one of below:● One or more country information associated to the MBS service, which indicates the countries the MBS service intends to provide.■ e.g., the received MBS service area indicates a geographical area covering USA and Canada, then the NEF can include● One or more tracking Areas for the MBS service, which indicates the tracking areas the MBS service intends to provide.● One or more geographical areas for the MBS service, which indicates the tracking areas the MBS service intends to provide.● One or more TN cells for the MBS service, which indicates the TN cells covering the geographical area the MBS service intends to provide. It doesn’t indicate that the MBS service is provided in the TN cell, it only indicates that the TN cell’s geographical coverage is the same or is included in the geographical coverage of the MBS service.The details of above information are as discussed in previous section.Once when additional MBS service area information and / or MBS assisting information is available at NW’s side, together with available UE location, NW can perform at least one of below action:NW reject UE’s request to join MBS service when UE location is outside the MBS service areaNW removes / release UE from an MBS session when UE is outside of MBS service areaNW based on UE location to decide the multicast group and assigned group RNTI for monitoring and receiving multicast and for group notificationNW based on UE location to decide whether to use PTP or PTM transmission modeWith reference to FIG. 12, some examples on possible signaling options are as followsEmbodiment 7 transfer MBS assisting information in NEFIn this example, NEF is in responsible to transfer the external MBS service area info received from AF to MBS assisting information. External MBS service area information here refers to the MBS service area (e.g., in the format of a civil or postal address or geographical areas) received from Application Provider (AF) . The AF can be MBS service provider. The MBS assisting information details is as discussed in this applicant.In some examples, when transferring the received MBS service area information, NEF can include the cell identities and / or tracking areas in combination with MBS assisting information as discussed in this document. Or in another example, the inclusion of the MBS assisting information is mutual exclusive with legacy MBS service area information (i.e., cell identity list / TAI list)After which, NEF can deliver the MBS assisting information to at least one of function entities of CN (e.g., / UPF / SMF / MBS-UPF / MBS-AMF / MBS-SMF) , NG-RAN nodes or OAM.Furthermore, if NEF doesn’t provide the MBS assisting information directly to NG-RAN nodes, NG-RAN nodes can obtain the assisting information from at least one of above CN functional entities (e.g., AMF) or OAM. In a first option it obtains from function entities other than NEF, e.g., AMF. In a second option, NG-RAN nodes obtain the MBS assisting information directly from NEF.In another example, NEF or AF can directly provide the external MBS service area info to other functional entities of CN. And the received CN function entity can transfer the external MBS service area info received from AF to MBS assisting information as discussed in this applicant. CN or CN function entity can further provide the MBS assisting information to NG-RAN nodes or OAM.In yet another example, NEF or AF can directly provide the external MBS service area info to NG-RAN nodes. And the received NG-RAN nodes can transfer the external MBS service area info received from AF to MBS assisting information as discussed in this applicant.The other function entities of CN include at least one of AMF / UPF / SMF / MBS-UPF / MBS-AMF / MBS-SMF.Embodiment 8 CN provides MBS service area to NG-RANWith reference to FIG. 13, in some examples, CN (including functional entity of CN, e.g., AMF) can provide additional MBS information to NG-RAN, which can include at least the content of MBS assisting information as discussed this document, e.g., country information or external MBS service area info discussed in this applicant. The additional MBS information is optional presented. Based on which the NG-RAN node can provide appropriate MBS assisting information to UE.In another example the CN can provide external MBS service area info in the format of list geographical coverage, or a list of civic address to NG-RAN. And NG-RAN can be based on the received external MBS service area info to determine the MBS assisting information provided to UE. The MBS assisting information is as discussed in previous session. For above examples, NG message includes at least BROADCAST SESSION SETUP REQUEST, BROADCAST SESSION MODIFICATION REQUEST, MULTICAST SESSION UPDATE REQUEST, MULTICAST GROUP PAGING or new NGAP message defined to provide MBS assisting information relevant to MBS service area.Some preferred embodiments may implement the following technical solutions.1. A method of wireless communication (e.g., method 1400 depicted in FIG. 14) , comprising: receiving (1402) , by a wireless device, from a network device, assisting information related to multicast or broadcast service (MBS) ; and making a decision (1404) , by the wireless device, based on the assisting information, about an MBS service. As disclosed in the present document, in some embodiments, the wireless device may further use its location information in making a decision about the MBS service. Various examples of decisions are disclosed throughout the document including, for example, joining an MBS service, releasing an MBS service, and so on.2. A method of wireless communication (e.g., method 1500 depicted in FIG. 15) , comprising transmitting (1502) , to a wireless device, by a network device, assisting information related to multicast or broadcast service (MBS) allowing the wireless device to make a decision about an MBS service.3. The method of solutions 1-2, wherein the decision comprises deciding whether the MBS service is available, suitable, allowed, qualified, targeted or intended for the wireless device.4. The method of any of solutions 1-3, wherein the assisting information comprises a service area information.5. The method of solution 4, wherein the service area information comprises country information.6. The method of solution 4, wherein the service area information comprises tracking area information.7. The method of solution 5, wherein the decision comprises deciding that the MBS service is available responsive to the location information indicating that a country in which the wireless device is operating is indicated by the assisting information.8. The method of any of solutions 1-7, wherein the location information indicates that the wireless device is associated with more than one country.9. The method of any of solutions 1-8, wherein the assisting information is carried in a system information block.10. The method of any of solutions 1-9, wherein the assisting information includes an allowed country list and / or a bitmap indicating countries allowed for the MBS service.11. The method of any of solutions 1-10, wherein the decision about the MBS service comprises: responsive to determining, based on the assisting information, that no allowed MBS service is available: skipping, by the wireless device, acquisition of MBS configuration, or skipping, by the wireless device, monitoring scheduling information for reception of MBS data; or refraining, by the wireless device, reception of MBS data.12. The method of any of solutions 1-10, wherein the decision about the MBS service comprises: responsive to determining, based on the assisting information, that at least one MBS service is available: initiating, by the wireless device, acquisition of a multicast control channel (MCCH) ; or selecting one or more of the at least one MBS services that is available and initiating a multicast radio bearer establishment procedure.13. The method of any of solutions 1-10, wherein the decision about the MBS service comprises: responsive to determining, based on the assisting information, that an MBS service that is currently being received by the wireless device is now not available: releasing the MBS service.14. An apparatus for wireless communication comprising at least one processor configured to implement a method recited in any of above solutions.15. A computer-storage medium having code stored thereon, wherein the code, upon execution by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to implement a method recited in any of above solutions.Some of the embodiments described herein are described in the general context of methods or processes, which may be implemented in one embodiment by a computer program product, embodied in a computer-readable medium, including computer-executable instructions, such as program code, executed by computers in networked environments. A computer-readable medium may include removable and non-removable storage devices including, but not limited to, Read Only Memory (ROM) , Random Access Memory (RAM) , compact discs (CDs) , digital versatile discs (DVD) , etc. Therefore, the computer-readable media can include a non-transitory storage media. Generally, program modules may include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Computer-or processor-executable instructions, associated data structures, and program modules represent examples of program code for executing steps of the methods disclosed herein. The particular sequence of such executable instructions or associated data structures represents examples of corresponding acts for implementing the functions described in such steps or processes.Some of the disclosed embodiments can be implemented as devices or modules using hardware circuits, software, or combinations thereof. For example, a hardware circuit implementation can include discrete analog and / or digital components that are, for example, integrated as part of a printed circuit board. Alternatively, or additionally, the disclosed components or modules can be implemented as an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) and / or as a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) device. Some implementations may additionally or alternatively include a digital signal processor (DSP) that is a specialized microprocessor with an architecture optimized for the operational needs of digital signal processing associated with the disclosed functionalities of this application. Similarly, the various components or sub-components within each module may be implemented in software, hardware or firmware. The connectivity between the modules and / or components within the modules may be provided using any one of the connectivity methods and media that is known in the art, including, but not limited to, communications over the Internet, wired, or wireless networks using the appropriate protocols.While this document contains many specifics, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of an invention that is claimed or of what may be claimed, but rather as descriptions of features specific to particular embodiments. Certain features that are described in this document in the context of separate embodiments can also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment can also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable sub-combination. Moreover, although features may be described above as acting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, one or more features from a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from the combination, and the claimed combination may be directed to a sub-combination or a variation of a sub-combination. Similarly, while operations are depicted in the drawings in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results.Only a few implementations and examples are described, and other implementations, enhancements, and variations can be made based on what is described and illustrated in this document.
Claims
1.A method of wireless communications, comprising:receiving, by a wireless device, from a network device, assisting information related to multicast or broadcast service (MBS) ; andmaking a decision, by the wireless device, based on the assisting, about an MBS service.2.A method of wireless communication, comprising:transmitting, to a wireless device, by a network device, assisting information related to multicast or broadcast service (MBS) allowing the wireless device to make a decision about an MBS service.3.The method of claims 1-2, wherein the decision comprises deciding whether the MBS service is available, suitable, allowed, qualified, targeted or intended for the wireless device.4.The method of any of claims 1-3, wherein the assisting information comprises a service area information.5.The method of claim 4, wherein the service area information comprises country information.6.The method of claim 4, wherein the service area information comprises tracking area information.7.The method of claim 5, wherein the decision comprises deciding that the MBS service is available responsive to the location information indicating that a country in which the wireless device is operating is indicated by the assisting information.8.The method of any of claims 1-7, wherein the location information indicates that the wireless device is associated with more than one country.9.The method of any of claims 1-8, wherein the assisting information is carried in a system information block.10.The method of any of claims 1-9, wherein the assisting information includes an allowed country list and / or a bitmap indicating countries allowed for the MBS service.11.The method of any of claims 1-10, wherein the decision about the MBS service comprises:responsive to determining, based on the assisting information, that no allowed MBS service is available:skipping, by the wireless device, acquisition of MBS configuration, orskipping, by the wireless device, monitoring scheduling information for reception of MBS data; orrefraining, by the wireless device, reception of MBS data.12.The method of any of claims 1-10, wherein the decision about the MBS service comprises:responsive to determining, based on the assisting information, that at least one MBS service is available:initiating, by the wireless device, acquisition of an MBS control channel (MCCH) ; orselecting one or more of the at least one MBS services that is available and initiating a multicast radio bearer establishment procedure.13.The method of any of claims 1-10, wherein the decision about the MBS service comprises:responsive to determining, based on the assisting information, that an MBS service that is currently being received by the wireless device is now not available:releasing the MBS service.14.An apparatus for wireless communication comprising at least one processor configured to implement a method recited in any of above claims.15.A computer-storage medium having code stored thereon, wherein the code, upon execution by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to implement a method recited in any of above claims.
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