Investigation of IMS in an IPTV context.

Abstract: The trends in todays tele- and datacommunication market point toward using IP for all sorts of service delivery ranging from voice calls to TV. The next natural step in this evolution is to provide the same set of services to the end users independent of the access technology and device used. The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) is an IP based telecommunications platform which targets this and lets the operators develop new services once which can then be used on many different devices. This thesis examines the integration of IPTV and IMS. Can IMS be used to deliver TV services and can the IPTV set-top-boxes of today be used as clients in IMS? Since this is a new and previously unexamined area an explorative approach is taken. The aim is to identify how such an integration could be performed and the possible problems which have to be solved. To assist in this exploration a TV-push service based on IMS technology is constructed. Based on the experiences from this service a general architecture for IPTV in IMS is suggested. A number of problems crucial to solve for a successful integration are identified and possible solutions to these are discussed.