Abstract: In one aspect, a method of supporting enhanced UE policies that control which access technologies and the number of access technologies a user equipment can access beyond a single 3GPP connection and a single non-3GPP connection, the method including registering, by a user equipment, to a 3GPP network, wherein the registering includes an indication that the user equipment supports multi-access packet data unit (MA-PDU) sessions; receiving, by the user equipment, a UE policy for a first application permitting the user equipment to access at least three access technologies for communications while accessing the first application, wherein the UE policy is received from an access mobility function (AMF) of the 3GPP network; and determining, by the user equipment, one or more of the access technologies permitted in the UE policy for the first application to use to establish protocol data unit (PDU) session with the first application.

Abstract: A system is provided for supporting roaming between LTE EPC network and 5G network of a first mobile network operator by 5GC network of a second network operator. The system may include the EPC network including a serving gateway in communication with a 4G base station being in the EPC network. The system may also include the 5G network of the first mobile network operator including a vSMF in communication with a 5G base station being in the 5G network of the first network operator. The system may also include the 5GC network of the second network operator including a hSMF. The vSMF is configured to receive a communication from the serving gateway to anchor mobility between the LTE EPC network and the 5G network of the first mobile network operator, and to communicate with the hSMF in the 5GC network of the second network operator using 5G roaming interfaces.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provide to bring network capability awareness to steering of roaming (SoR). A home network includes a capabilities list of visited networks and their associated with the network capabilities. For SoR, he user equipment (UE) maintains a roaming partners list (RPL). The RPL provides a list of visited networks arranged in order of priority/preference (e.g., the first visited network in the RPL has first priority). The first visited network receives a registration request from the UE and relays a corresponding authentication request to the home network. The visited network in the RPL can be reordered when the UE requires a network capability not supported by the first visited network in the RPL, as indicated by the capabilities list. Depending on the implementation, the UE or the home network can make this decision to reorder the RPL.

Abstract: Presented herein are techniques to provide a network-initiated group disconnect for wireless devices belonging to one or more device group(s). In one example, a method may include determining, by a control element of a network, that at least one device group is to be disconnected from the network, wherein the at least one device group comprises a plurality of wireless devices connected to the network; identifying one or more access network radios through which the plurality of wireless devices are connected to the network; and triggering a disconnect command for the at least one device group to be broadcast from each of the one or more access network radios to trigger the plurality of wireless devices to disconnect from the network.

Abstract: Presented herein are techniques to provide selective network slice authentication and authorization in a mobile network environment. In one example, a method may include obtaining, by an access management element of a mobile network, a registration request from a user equipment, wherein the registration request identifies a plurality of network slices with which the user equipment seeks authentication; determining that if authentication for the user equipment with a first network slice is successful, authentication for the user equipment with one or more other network slices can be skipped; and upon successful authentication for the user equipment with the first network slice, skipping authentication for the user equipment with the one or more other network slices.

Abstract: Provided herein are techniques to facilitate service-based network function (NF) selection for roaming scenarios involving multiple home core networks. In one instance, a method may include obtaining, by a visited public land mobile network (PLMN) from a home PLMN that is to provide a first service for a wireless device, service hosting information that identifies a service hosting data network name and a service hosting PLMN that is to provide a second service for the wireless device in which the service hosting information is obtained by the visited PLMN through registration of the wireless device with the home PLMN. Upon determining that a session for the second service is to be established for the wireless device, the method may include performing a NF query to the service hosting PLMN identified from the service hosting information obtained through the registration in order to identify a NF to facilitate the session.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for operator specific customization of a network service configuration. In some embodiments, an operator defines a mapping between an application executing on a user equipment (UE) and a network service configuration. In some embodiments, the network service configuration indicates whether the application is to be supported via a UPF instance located within the core network or deployed at a network edge. The mapping is then provided to the UE, and passed back to the core network, for example, when the UE establishes a connection on behalf of the UE application. The core network then supports the UE application consistent with the configuration specified by the mapping.

Abstract: Disclosed are embodiments that leverage a central control plane of a managed 5G network service architecture across multiple serviced tenants by deploying tenant specific user plane function (UPF) and gNB components within tenant managed compute infrastructure. To enable this architecture, the disclosed embodiments assign gNBs and UPF instances to specific tenants and communicate those assignments to core components. Policies can be defined and applied to specific tenants from the central control plane. Inbound data routing to a specific tenant is accomplished by referencing a data store in the control plane that identifies which gNBs are assigned to a tenant associated with the incoming data. Those gNBs are then paged to service the incoming data.

Abstract: Provided herein are techniques to facilitate location-specific wireless local area network (WLAN) offload restrictions for user equipment based on wireless wide area network (WWAN) radio band(s). In at least one example, a method performed by an authentication server of a WLAN may include, for a user equipment (UE) that is connected to an NR radio band of a WWAN and is seeking to connect to the WLAN, querying a subscription element of the WWAN to obtain a location indicator and an NR radio band indicator for the UE; determining, based on the location indicator and the NR radio band indicator, whether the UE is allowed or required to offload to the WLAN; and based on determining that the UE is allowed to offload from the WWAN to the WLAN, facilitating a WLAN association response message to be sent to the UE for offloading the UE to the WLAN.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for operator specific customization of a network service configuration. In some embodiments, an operator defines a mapping between an application executing on a user equipment (UE) and a network service configuration. In some embodiments, the network service configuration indicates whether the application is to be supported via a UPF instance located within the core network or deployed at a network edge. The mapping is then provided to the UE, and passed back to the core network, for example, when the UE establishes a connection on behalf of the UE application. The core network then supports the UE application consistent with the configuration specified by the mapping.

Abstract: Disclosed are embodiments that leverage a central control plane of a managed 5G network service architecture across multiple serviced tenants by deploying tenant specific user plane function (UPF) and gNB components within tenant managed compute infrastructure. To enable this architecture, the disclosed embodiments assign gNBs and UPF instances to specific tenants and communicate those assignments to core components. Policies can be defined and applied to specific tenants from the central control plane. Inbound data routing to a specific tenant is accomplished by referencing a data store in the control plane that identifies which gNBs are assigned to a tenant associated with the incoming data. Those gNBs are then paged to service the incoming data.

Abstract: A control plane (CP) function for session management performs a procedure for establishing local traffic offloading for a user equipment (UE) in a mobile network having an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and Fifth Generation (5G) converged core that supports communications via a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) radio access network (RAN) and a Fifth Generation (5G) RAN. Initially, a connection is established for the UE via the LTE RAN that includes a first bearer between the LTE RAN and a central serving gateway-user plane (SGW-U) at a central location, and a second bearer between the central SGW-U and a central packet gateway-user plane (PGW-U) at the central location. The CP function inserts a local SGW-U at an edge location and subsequently inserts a local intermediate user plane function (I-UPF) with an uplink classifier (UL-CL) at the edge location for enabling edge offload of traffic from the LTE RAN.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and computer-readable media for authentication in a multi-cloud cellular service. In one aspect, a method includes receiving, at a controller of a local site within the multi-cloud cellular service, a network connection request from a device, the cloud-based authentication component being a central network component configured to store device credentials and network policies for authenticating devices connecting to the multi-cloud cellular service across all sites associated with the multi-cloud cellular service. In one aspect, the method also includes locally authenticating, by the controller, the device using stored credential information obtained from the cloud-based authentication component prior to losing the connectivity to the cloud-based authentication component.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to systems and techniques for providing service continuity for User Equipment (UE) services associated with certain network slices. In one example, the systems and techniques can receive a registration request from a UE, wherein the registration request includes a requested slice, and determine a current network location of the UE. In response to determining that the current network location of the UE does not support the requested slice, one or more additional network locations that support the requested slice can be identified. Location information associated with the one or more additional network locations can be identified and a registration response message can be transmitted to the UE, wherein the registration response message includes location information of an one or more additional Tracking Area Identities (TAIs) or additional Registration Areas (RAs) that support the requested slice.

Abstract: Disclosed are a system and method for updating a user equipment route selection policy. The method includes receiving, at a home network in communication with a user equipment, an indication that a user of the user equipment desires to connect to a standalone non-public network for an event, receiving service hosting information for the event, revising a user equipment route selection policy at the home network based on the service hosting information to yield an updated user equipment route selection policy and transmitting the updated user equipment route selection policy to the user equipment. The user equipment registers, based on the updated user equipment route selection policy, with the standalone non-public network for the event.

Abstract: Presented herein are techniques to provide a network-initiated group disconnect for wireless devices belonging to one or more device group(s). In one example, a method may include determining, by a control element of a network, that at least one device group is to be disconnected from the network, wherein the at least one device group comprises a plurality of wireless devices connected to the network; identifying one or more access network radios through which the plurality of wireless devices are connected to the network; and triggering a disconnect command for the at least one device group to be broadcast from each of the one or more access network radios to trigger the plurality of wireless devices to disconnect from the network.

Abstract: Presented herein are techniques to provide selective network slice authentication and authorization in a mobile network environment. In one example, a method may include obtaining, by an access management element of a mobile network, a registration request from a user equipment, wherein the registration request identifies a plurality of network slices with which the user equipment seeks authentication; determining that if authentication for the user equipment with a first network slice is successful, authentication for the user equipment with one or more other network slices can be skipped; and upon successful authentication for the user equipment with the first network slice, skipping authentication for the user equipment with the one or more other network slices.

Abstract: Techniques and mechanisms for use in facilitating home network assisted concurrent access to network slices in multiple visited public land mobile networks (VPLMNs) are described. A control plane (CP) function for mobility management may receive, from a UE (e.g., configured without dual connectivity), a message which indicates a registration request for registration using a first network slice and a second network slice. The CP function may manage registration for the UE in response to the registration request. The CP function may receive, from the UE, a message which indicates a request for establishing a protocol data unit (PDU) session using the second network slice which is not supported or available in the first VPLMN. The CP function may forward the request for establishing the PDU session to an application function (AF) for managing establishment of the PDU session for the UE using the second network slice in a second VPLMN.

Abstract: A method enables communication between Session Management Function (SMF) and User Plane Function (UPF) instances which are separately deployed behind Network Address Translation (NAT) services. The method includes configuring an SMF or a UPF to initiate an association with a corresponding UPF or SMF. The SMF registers first information with a Network Repository Function (NRF) enabling the remote UPF to communicate with the SMF through a NAT service. The method further includes obtaining second information from the NRF enabling the SMF to communicate with the remote UPF through the NAT service. The method also includes sending an association request to the remote UPF based on the second information and receiving an association response from the remote UPF through the NAT service.

Abstract: A system is provided for supporting roaming between LTE EPC network and 5G network of a first mobile network operator by 5GC network of a second network operator. The system may include the EPC network including a serving gateway in communication with a 4G base station being in the EPC network. The system may also include the 5G network of the first mobile network operator including a vSMF in communication with a 5G base station being in the 5G network of the first network operator. The system may also include the 5GC network of the second network operator including a hSMF. The vSMF is configured to receive a communication from the serving gateway to anchor mobility between the LTE EPC network and the 5G network of the first mobile network operator, and to communicate with the hSMF in the 5GC network of the second network operator using 5G roaming interfaces.