Introducing innovative services with a dense broadcast network

We introduce a novel broadcast network architecture, where macro and micro base stations (BS) transmit partially the same signal in a SFN manner. Leveraging this architecture we propose to operate the medium as a pure IP multicast bearer coupled with a feedback channel for scheduling and optimizing the bandwidth usage. The extra bandwidth can be managed locally with a fine grain thanks to the dense BS deployment. Such a system drastically improves the coverage area, including indoor, while reducing power consumption, using low power transmitters and well targeted transmissions. It also copes with the ramping up of ldquogreenrdquo requirements. The single frequency operation also leads to a highly bandwidth efficient system, suitable for exploitation of the digital dividend in the UHF band for instance. Finally, this system can introduce some innovative services, potentially managed by new players so that the overall revenues pay back the dense radio architecture.