WG Action: IP over DVB (ipdvb)

[The IESG <iesg-secretary@ietf.org>]

A new IETF working group has been formed in the Internet Area.  
For additional information, please contact the Area Directors or the WG
Chairs.

IP over DVB (ipdvb)
-------------------

 Current Status: Proposed Working Group

 Chair(s):
 Gorry Fairhurst (gorry@erg.abdn.ac.uk)

 Responsible Area Director:
 Margaret Wasserman <margaret@thingmagic.com>

 Mailing Lists:
 General Discussion: ip-dvb@erg.abdn.ac.uk
 To subscribe: subscribe ip-dvb at majordomo@erg.abdn.ac.uk
 Archive: http://www.erg.abdn.ac.uk/ip-dvb/archive/

 Description of Working Group:

 The WG will develop new protocols and architectures to enable better 
 deployment of IP over MPEG-2 transport and provide easier interworking with
IP  networks. Specific properties of this subnetwork technology include
link-layer 
 support for unicast and multicast, large numbers of down-stream receivers, 
 and efficiency of transmission.

 These properties resemble those in some other wireless networks. The 
 specific focus of the group is on the use of MPEG-2 transport (examples 
 include the Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) standards: DVB-RCS; DVB-S and
DVB-T 
 and related ATSC Specifications) in next generation networks and is not 
 concerned with the development, replacement, or retention of existing
protocols  on the existing generation of networks.

 The WG will endeavour to reuse existing open standard technologies, giving 
 guidance on usage in IP networks, whenever they are able to fulfill 
 requirements. For instance, we acknowledge the existing Multiprotocol 
 Encapsulation (MPE) [ATSC A/90;ETSI EN 301192] and that this will continue 
 to be deployed in the future to develop new markets. Any alternative 
 encapsulation would need to co-exist with MPE.

 Appropriate standards will be defined to support transmission of IPv4 and
IPv6  datagrams between IP networks connected using MPEG-2 transport
subnetworks. 
 This includes options for encapsulation, dynamic unicast address resolution
for  IPv4/IPv6, and the mechanisms needed to map routed IP multicast traffic
to the 
 MPEG-2 transport subnetwork. The standards will be appropriate to both MPE
and 
 any alternative encapsulation method developed. The developed protocols may

 also be applicable to other multicast enabled subnetwork technologies 
 supporting large numbers of directly connected systems.

 The current list of work items is:

 Specify the requirements and architecture for supporting IPv4/IPv6 via
MPEG-2  transmission networks. Such requirements should consider the range
of 
 platforms currently (or anticipated to be) in use. This draft will be an 
 Informational RFC.

 Define a standards-track RFC defining an efficient encapsulation method.
The  design will consider the need for MAC addresses, the potential need for
synchronisation between streams, support for a wide range of IPv4/IPv6 and
multicast traffic.

 Provide an Informational RFC describing a framework for unicast and
multicast  address resolution over MPEG-2 transmission networks. The
document will 
 describe options for the address resolution process, relating these to 
 appropriate usage scenarios and suggesting appropriate protocol mechanisms 
 for both the existing Multi-Protocol Encapsulation (MPE) and the efficient 
 encapsulation (2). Consideration will be paid to existing standards, and
the 
 cases for IPv6 and IPv4 will be described. 
 
 Define standards-track RFC(s) to specify procedures for dynamic address 
 resolution for IPv4/IPv6. This will describe the protocol and syntax of the

 information exchanged to bind unicast and multicast flows to the MPEG-2 TS 
 Logical Channels.  This will include specific optimisations appropriate for

 networks reaching large numbers of down-stream systems.

 Goals and Milestones:

 JAN 04 Draft of a WG Architecture ID describing usage of MPEG-2
                       transport for IP transmission.
 MAR 04 Draft of a WG ID on the new Encapsulation.
 JUL 04 Draft of a WG ID on the AR Framework, specifying mechanisms
                       to perform address resolution.
 JUL 04 Submit Architecture to IESG
 OCT 04 Draft of a WG ID or the AR Protocol, defining a protocol to
                       perform IP address resolution.
 OCT 04 Submit Encapsulation to IESG
 APR 05 Submit AR Framework to IESG
 AUG 05 Submit AR Protocol to IESG
 AUG 05 Progress the Encapsulation RFC along the IETF standards track.