Network-assisted offloading for mobile cloud applications

Abstract

Data traffic from mobile devices experiences unprecedented growth, which current cellular network capacities cannot sustain. Traffic offloading to other type of networks, such as WiFi, can be used to reduce load in cellular networks. In this paper, we propose a novel solution, which unlike other existing methodologies, implements tight cooperation with the cellular network to optimize traffic offloading. The cellular network provides information about channel usage statistics, user mobility patterns, available resources and other parameters. The offloading decisions aim at optimizing the balance between user application requirements and availability of network resources. The validation results, obtained from NS-3 simulations, confirm effectiveness of the proposed solution in balancing cellular traffic load while ensuring QoS.