QoE-Based Network Selection in Heterogeneous Environments
Résumé
The increasing demand to be connected anywhere, anytime and anyhow has encouraged the
deployment of heterogeneous networks having a mix of technologies such as LTE, Wi-Fi,
WiMAX, etc. At the same time, most of the new user terminals (e.g. smart phones, tablets, etc.)
are equipped with multiple interfaces, which allow them to select the access network that offers
the best quality. Managing network in such environment is challenging. Moreover, nowadays
quality of experience (QoE) has become a crucial issue due to a phenomenal growth in
multimedia traffic. As user satisfaction is the key to success of any service, the network
selection should be centered on QoE or the quality perceived by the end user. In other words, a
network selection mechanism should select the network that offers the best QoE, while trying to
optimize the network resources. In this chapter, we first present a QoE-based network selection
mechanism for homogeneous environment. When several points of attachment are available,
we propose to use a QoE-based solution that allows users to select the best network while
keeping load balanced among them. Then we provide a network selection scheme for
heterogeneous environment, which is the main focus of the rest of this chapter. Our proposal
takes QoE into account (among other metrics) for network selection and also provides better
load balancing between different networks. It is a user-based and network-assisted approach.
By providing users with relevant information about the network for decision-making process, this
approach is a good compromise for both user and network operator.