Capacity improvement in EMBMS using SVC and layer-aware bearer allocation

Today's solution to realize wide coverage with the Release 9 MBMS specification is to transmit an H.264/AVC video service with a robustness determined by the worst reception conditions of the target area. This sacrifices service data rate for robustness due to lower modulation and FEC code-rate. The combination of bearer channel multiplex and SVC promises significant gains in terms of channel capacity by establishing unequal error protection on the physical layer. In comparison with single layer transmission, SVC achieves equal performance in terms of continuous playout while allocating fewer resources for the expensive robust channel. This benefit is gained by providing temporary lower quality video to users within bad reception conditions. Simulation results within an MBSFN Release 9 network show significant capacity gains over a given bandwidth with only minor quality degradation for users located in bad reception areas while preserving playout robustness of H.264/AVC single layer services.