Comparison of multicast/broadcast services in long term evolution advanced and IEEE 802.16m networks

This paper performs a comparison of multicast/broadcast services (MBS) support in Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) IEEE 802.16m. Firstly, the main technical features of both standards concerning MBS operation are presented. It is shown that WiMAX offers higher unicast/MBS multiplexing flexibility as it supports both frequency and time multiplexing schemes, whereas LTE-A only includes time multiplexing. Besides, onlyWiMAX supports multi-antenna transmission. Next, the results of two simulation-based assessments are presented. In the former, it is considered a scenario with all cells transmitting the same MBS service. The effect of inter-site distance (ISD) on themaximum MBS data rate is evaluated. Results show thatWiMAXconfigurations outperform LTE-A for small ISD. This is becauseWiMAX provides a higher number of resources dedicated to data transmission for the same bandwidth. Furthermore, some WiMAX configurations support two spatially multiplexed data streams. With higher ISDs, LTE-A outperforms single-stream WiMAX configurations. In the second assessment, a MBSFN area surrounded by interfering cells is considered to compare unicast/MBS multiplexing performance. The higher maximum MBS data rate is achieved inWiMAX with time division multiplexing, which is precisely the only alternative included in LTE-APeer Reviewe