6.41 Providing Access to Local Services
22.2613GPPRelease 18Service requirements for the 5G systemTS
6.41.1 Description
Providing access to local services refers to the capability to provide access to a hosting network and a set of services offered by the hosting network provider, and 3rd party service providers including other network operators and 3rd party application providers. The services can be localized (i.e. provided at specific/limited area) and can be bounded in time. The user can become aware of the available access to local services, and the process to gain and terminate access to the hosting network and local services. This process should be efficient, and convenient from a user experience standpoint.
Providing access to local services creates new opportunities for users and service providers. For example, access can be provided in areas where there is no coverage provided by other networks (for example, on a fairground established far from other infrastructure), or the access and local services can be established as needed (on a short-term basis), without the need for long term business relationships, permanently installed equipment, etc.
The type of local services and access for localized services via a hosting network can be promoted and arranged through different channels. Principally the service providers (e.g., brick and mortar businesses, entertainment venues, construction contractors, first responder agencies, etc.) will provide information and proper incentive or instructions to potential users so that they will seek to access the local services via hosting networks.
6.41.2 Requirements
6.41.2.1 General
In the requirements below, it is assumed that:
– Both the home network and the hosting network can be a PLMN or NPN.
– Only subscribers of a public network can roam into a PLMN. Examples of interworking scenarios between network operators and application providers for localized services are indicated in Annex H.
6.41.2.2 Configuration of Localized Services in Hosting Network
The 5G system shall support suitable mechanisms to allow automatically establishing localized service agreements for a specific occasion (time and location) and building temporary relationship among hosting network operator and other service providers including network operators or 3rd party application providers.
The 5G system shall support means for the service provider to request the hosting network via standard mechanisms to provide access to 3rd party services at a specific period of time and location. This period of time shall be flexible, so that a change in service provision can be decided at any time (e.g., to cancel or prolong local services in the locality of service delivery) based on localized services agreements.
Based on localized services agreements, the 5G system shall provide suitable means to allow the service provider to request and provision various localized service requirements, including QoS, expected/maximum number of users, event information for discovery, network slicing, required IP connectivity etc, and routing policies for the application of the localized services via the hosting network.
The 5G system shall support means for a hosting network to create policies and configure resources for the requested time and location for the 3rd party services based on the received request.
The 5G system shall support means for a hosting network to notify the service provider of the accepted service parameters and routing policies.
Subject to regulatory requirements and localized service agreements, the 5G system shall allow a home network operator to automatically negotiate policies with the hosting network for allowing the home network’s subscribers to connect at a specific occasion, e.g., time and location, for their home network services.
Subject to the automatic localized services agreements between the hosting network operator and home network operator, for UE with only home network subscription and with authorization to access hosting networks the 5G system shall support:
– access to the hosting network and use home network services or selected localized services via the hosting network,
– seamless service continuity for home network services or selected localized services when moving between two hosting networks or a host network and the home network.
The 5G system shall support a mechanism to enable configuration of a network that provides access to localized services such that the services can be limited in terms of their spatial extent (in terms of a particular topology, for example a single cell), as specified by a 3rd party.
The 5G system shall support a mechanism to enable configuration of a network that provides access to localized services such that the services can be limited in terms of the resources or capacity available, to correspond to requirements that apply only to the locality of service delivery, as specified by a service provider of localized services.
The 5G system shall support means for a hosting network to provide a 3rd party service provider with information for automatic discovery of the hosting network by the UEs to allow access to specific 3rd party services.
The 5G system shall support secure mechanisms to allow a home network to coordinate with a hosting network for a subscriber to temporarily access the hosting network (e.g., based on temporary credentials) at a given time (start time and duration) and location.
6.41.2.3 User Manual Selection of Localized Services via Hosting Network
The hosting network shall allow a UE to manually select temporary localized services which are provided via local breakout at the hosting network.
NOTE: localized services are provided via local breakout at the hosting network can be based on interworking scenarios for hosting network owned/collaborative services as indicated in Annex H.
6.41.2.4 UE Configuration, Provisioning, Authentication and Authorization
Subject to localized services agreements, the 5G system shall enable a home network operator to authorize a UE for using its home network services via a hosting network for a certain period of time and/or location.
The 5G system shall allow a trusted 3rd party service provider to provide UEs with localized service policy (e.g., QoS, network slice in the hosting or home network, service restriction such as time and location) via the hosting network or the UE’s home network.
The 5G system shall enable a UE to use credentials provided by the hosting network with or without coordination with the home network of the UE, to make use of localized services via the hosting network with a certain time (including starting time and the duration) and location validity.
The 5G system shall be able to allow the home network to steer its UE(s) to a hosting network with the consideration of the location, times, coverage of the hosting network and services offered by the home network and hosting network.
The 5G system shall provide support to enable secure means to authenticate and authorize a user of a UE accessing a hosting network, including cases in which a UE has no subscription to the hosting network and still needs to get authorized to use localized services via the hosting network.
NOTE: It can be assumed that a network provider deploying a hosting network has access to respective identification information about the user, e.g., through a separate registration process outside the scope of 3GPP.
The 5G system shall be able to authenticate and authorize the UE of a user authenticated to a hosting network to access the hosting network and its localized services on request of a service provider.
6.41.2.5 UE Discovery, Selection and Access
Subject to operator’s policy and agreement between a 3rd party service provider and operator, the 5G system shall enable a UE to receive and use configuration provided by a 3rd party service provider to discover and access a hosting network and localized services, including the considerations of prior service agreement with a 3rd party service provider and no prior subscription to hosting network. If the UE is able to obtain services from two networks simultaneously, it may additionally select the hosting network. If the UE cannot maintain the connection to the home network while selecting the hosting network, the selection shall only be done on request by the user, i.e., using manual selection.
The 5G system shall support secure means for a UE to select and access localized services which may be provided by a 3rd party service provider via a hosting network, independent of prior subscription to the hosting network or 3rd party service provider.
The 5G system shall enable the home network to allow a UE to automatically select a hosting network for accessing localized services when specified conditions (e.g., predefined time, location) are fulfilled.
The 5G system shall be able to prevent a UE to re-access the hosting network after the localized services were terminated if the authorization for the localized services is no longer valid (e.g., can be based on certain conditions such as time or location of the user).
The 5G system may support means for a UE which may or may not have prior subscription to the hosting network to display human readable information on how to gain access to the hosting network and available 3rd party services.
The 5G system shall support a mechanism to allow a user to manually select a specific local hosting network.
NOTE: Additional information can be presented to the user to facilitate the manual network selection.
The 5G system shall be able to limit access of specific UEs to a configurable area of a hosting network’s coverage area.
The 5G system shall be able to maintain privacy of a user against the hosting network while the UE does not make use of the hosting network, for example, to prevent tracking of UEs by hosting networks.
The 5G system shall enable the home network to instruct a UE to select a hosting network with certain conditions (e.g., predefined time, location) based on the request from a service provider.
The 5G system shall enable the home network to allow a UE to select a hosting network or change to another hosting network, without any additional user intervention as long as the delivered services, both localized services and home routed services, are unchanged.
6.41.2.6 Hosting Network Localized Services and Home Operator Services
The 5G system shall enable the home network operator to indicate to the UE what services are preferred to be used from the home network when the UE connects to a hosting network and the requested services are available from both the hosting and the home network.
Based on localized service agreements, the hosting network shall be able to provide required connectivity and QoS for a UE simultaneously connected to the hosting network for localized services and its home network for home network services.
A UE shall be able to connect to its home network via the hosting network, if supported by the hosting network and the home network based on localized service agreements.
6.41.2.7 Returning to Home Network
The 5G system shall provide mechanisms to mitigate user plane and control plane overload caused by a high number of UEs returning from a temporary local access of a hosting network to their home network in a very short period of time.
The 5G system shall provide mechanisms to minimize the impact on the UEs communication e.g., to prevent user plane and control plane outages when returning to a home network together with other high number of UEs in a very short period of time, after terminating their temporary local access to a hosting network.
6.41.2.8 Charging
The 5G system shall be able to collect charging information for the use of localized services at the hosting network and provide the charging records to UEs’ home operators based on localized service agreements and charging policies provided by the service providers of localized services.
6.41.2.9 Regulatory Services
A hosting network using the 5G system shall be able to support regulatory services (e.g., PWS, LI, and emergency calls), based on regional/national regulatory requirements.
6.41.2.10 Multicast/Broadcast
The operator of a hosting network shall support a mechanism allowing different service providers of localized services to disseminate their services and content over broadcast/multicast transport. This mechanism should also provide means to include diverse content in the same transmission, e.g., to include advertisements with other content, or to include multiple content in the same media delivered to the user.
A hosting network shall provide multicast and broadcast services in an energy efficient manner to UEs receiving this service.
A hosting network shall support resource efficient content delivery through multicast/broadcast.
A hosting network shall support a mechanism to provide low latency signalling for efficient content delivery to many UEs.
Subject to home operator policy, a hosting network shall be able to prioritize specific multicast and broadcast services for local access over home routed access, even if the same service is available in both networks.