Exploiting MIMO Technology for Optimal MBMS Power Allocation

In mobile networks, the provision of rich multimedia services, such as Mobile TV, is considered of key importance. To this end, Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service (MBMS)--that was introduced in the Release 6 of Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS)--is envisaged to play an instrumental role in the proliferation of mobile market. The reason behind the design of MBMS was the need to provide multiple users with the same data at the same time in 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) cellular networks. Still, MBMS performance is limited by the base stations' transmission power. As an aftermath, efficient power allocation techniques should be implemented so as to ensure the mass provision of multimedia applications to mobile users. This paper proposes a novel mechanism for efficient radio bearer selection during MBMS transmissions. The proposed mechanism is based on the concept of transport channels combination in any cell of the network. Furthermore, the mechanism exploits the performance enhancements emerged from Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antennas and manages to efficiently deliver multiple MBMS sessions. The proposed mechanism is thoroughly evaluated and compared with the radio bearer selection mechanisms proposed by 3GPP.