Patent Publication Number: US-2022239710-A1

Title: Network node, ip multimedia subsystem (ims) node, over the top (ott) digital assistant, and methods in a communications network

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     Embodiments herein relate to a network node, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) node, an Over The Top (OTT) Digital Assistant (DA) and a methods therein. In particular, they relate to handling access to sharing media in a media session in the OTT DA. 
     BACKGROUND 
     In a typical wireless communication network, wireless devices, also known as wireless communication devices, mobile stations, stations (STA) and/or user equipment (UE), communicate via a Local Area Network such as a WiFi network or a Radio Access Network (RAN) to one or more core networks (CN). The RAN covers a geographical area which is divided into service areas or cell areas, which may also be referred to as a beam or a beam group, with each service area or cell area being served by a radio network node such as a radio access node e.g., a Wi-Fi access point or a radio base station (RBS), which in some networks may also be denoted, for example, a NodeB, eNodeB (eNB), or gNB as denoted in 5th Generation (5G). A service area or cell area is a geographical area where radio coverage is provided by the radio network node. The radio network node communicates over an air interface operating on radio frequencies with the wireless device within range of the radio network node. The radio network node communicates to the wireless device in DownLink (DL) and from the wireless device in UpLink (UL). 
     Specifications for the Evolved Packet System (EPS), also called a Fourth Generation (4G) network, have been completed within the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and this work continues in the coming 3GPP releases, for example to specify a Fifth Generation (5G) network also referred to as 5G New Radio (NR). The EPS comprises the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), also known as the Long Term Evolution (LTE) radio access network, and the Evolved Packet Core (EPC), also known as System Architecture Evolution (SAE) core network. E-UTRAN/LTE is a variant of a 3GPP radio access network wherein the radio network nodes are directly connected to the EPC core network rather than to RNCs used in 3rd Generation (3G) networks. In general, in E-UTRAN/LTE the functions of a 3G RNC are distributed between the radio network nodes, e.g. eNodeBs in LTE, and the core network. As such, the RAN of an EPS has an essentially “flat” architecture comprising radio network nodes connected directly to one or more core networks, i.e. they are not connected to RNCs. To compensate for that, the E-UTRAN specification defines a direct interface between the radio network nodes, this interface being denoted the X2 interface. 
     Multi-antenna techniques can significantly increase the data rates and reliability of a wireless communication system. The performance is in particular improved if both the transmitter and the receiver are equipped with multiple antennas, which results in a Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) communication channel. Such systems and/or related techniques are commonly referred to as MIMO. 
     In addition to faster peak Internet connection speeds, 5G planning aims at higher capacity than current 4G, allowing higher number of mobile broadband users per area unit, and allowing consumption of higher or unlimited data quantities in gigabyte per month and user. This would make it feasible for a large portion of the population to stream high-definition media many hours per day with their mobile devices, when out of reach of Wi-Fi hotspots. 5G research and development also aims at improved support of machine to machine communication, also known as the Internet of things, aiming at lower cost, lower battery consumption and lower latency than 4G equipment. 
     Over-The-Top (OTT) services have been introduced allowing a third party telecommunications service provider to provide services that are delivered across an Internet Protocol (IP) network. The IP network may e.g. be a public internet or cloud services delivered via a third party access network, as opposed to a carrier&#39;s own access network. OTT may refer to a variety of services including communications, such as e.g. voice and/or messaging, content, such as e.g. TV and/or music, and cloud-based offerings, such as e.g. computing and storage. 
     A further OTT service is a Digital Assistant (DA). The DA may perform tasks or services upon request from a user of a UE. 
     IMS is a general-purpose, open industry standard for voice and multimedia communications over packet-based IP networks. It is a core network technology, that may serve as a low-level foundation for technologies like Voice over LTE (VoLTE) Voice over IP (VoIP), Push-To-Talk (PTT), Push-To-View, Video Calling, and Video Sharing. 
     The core network node may detect a keyword, which may also be referred to as a hot word, indicating that the user is providing instructions to the DA and may forward the instructions to a network node controlled by a third party service provider, the network node may e.g. comprise a DA platform. 
     An intent is an abstract description of an operation to be performed. The text describing an intent when used herein is written with the text font Courier New Italic. An intent may be used with context #startActivity (Intent) to launch an Activity, broadcastIntent to send it to any interested BroadcastReceiver components, and Context.startService(Intent) or Context.bindService (Intent, ServiceConnection, int) to communicate with a background Service. 
     An Intent provides a facility for performing late runtime binding between the code in different applications. Its most significant use is in a launching of activities, where it may be thought of as the glue between activities. It is basically a passive data structure holding an abstract description of an action to be performed. 
     When a user calls startActivity( ) or startActivityForResult( ) and pass it as an implicit intent, the system resolves the intent to an app that can handle the intent and starts its corresponding Activity. If there&#39;s more than one app that can handle the intent, the system presents the user with a dialog to pick which app to use. 
     E.g. a user is saying to its DA: “DA, call Bob”. “DA” is in this case the keyword, or anything configured by the operator, and “Call Bob” is the “intent” The trigger to wake up the DA is the keyword. Then the intent can be call Bob or other actions available. 
     The DA platform may e.g. be a bot of a company providing a certain service, such as e.g. a taxi service or a food delivery service. An Internet bot, also known as a web robot, a WWW robot or simply a bot, is a software application that runs automated tasks such as scripts, over the Internet. Typically, bots perform tasks that are both simple and structurally repetitive, at a much higher rate than would be possible for a human alone. 
     The DA platform may then forward the instructions to a further network node, which may e.g. be an Application Server (AS) node, an agent server node, a skill server node or similar. This further network node has access to the core network node such as an IMS node via a Service Exposure Application Programming Interface (API). Thereby the DA may access the IMS node and perform services towards the core network node. 
     The DA platform is often required to pay a fee to the operator in order to be reachable by the operator&#39;s DA users. The user may also be required to pay fees to the operator and network provider for the usage of DA services. The operator may further be required to pay fees to the network provider for every transaction performed via the Service Exposure API. 
     A further way to implement the DA may be to provide the user with direct access to the network node controlled by the third party service provider comprising the DA platform. This may e.g. be done using a dedicated UE having access to the network node. This way of implementing the DA is commonly referred to as an OTT-controlled DA. 
     One of the services that can be invoked may e.g. be a telephony services or bot, implemented by the operator. 
     Some different models to support voice controlled digital assistants in IMS have been discussed. The following section shows the in-call DA function is implemented on each model, whereby the user avails of their DA service to interact with and/or manipulate on-going calls. Note that this use case is not feasible in the OTT controlled DA but only in the Operator-controlled DA and the OTT-delegated DA. 
     Operator-Controlled DA 
     Regarding Operator-controlled DA, the operator has its own DA. All the functionality is contained within the operator domain such as keyword detection, request fulfillment, media handling, service manipulation etc. Further, no service exposure towards an OTT cloud is needed. 
       FIG. 1  depicts an operator controlled DA. One of the services that may be invoked is telephony services or bot, implemented by the operator. 
     The user Alice&#39;s UE is not impacted. The operator controls the whole DA model comprising keyword detection, media handling and request fulfillment. As the operator controls the model, i.e. all session legs “in-call DA” functionality is supported in this model. A user Alice of a first UE, a first participant, wishes to have a call, here referred to as a conference, with a second participant, the user Bob using a second UE. The operator DA joins the conference as a participant and the logic will only starts when the keyword is detected every time a keyword is detected. In order to detect that the keyword has been said the operator DA must be listening to the conference from the first moment. In other words, the operator is there from the start but the logic will only starts when the keyword is detected. 
     The user Alice says Alice says: “DA, call Bob”. “DA” would be the keyword, or anything configured by the operator, for example OK, Telia, Telenor, Hey Tele2, etc. “Call Bob” is an intent. The trigger to wake up the DA is the keyword. Then the intent may be “call Bob” or other actions available to be used for triggering the action to call the user Bob. The request may come as a hotword to wake up the DA” and “keywords defining the intent or request. 
     The keyword is sent as SIP audio data to an IMS core network node  10  used by the operator. RTP is used for audio. 
     The IMS core network node detects the keyword comprising the RTP audio data and invokes S 04  the operator DA  10  to joins the conference. 
     The user Alice has an ongoing call S 06  with the user Bob. The DA is listening from the start. As soon as the user says, Hi Telia, or OK, Telenor (keyword), the DA will then “wake up” and listen to the intent, i.e. call Bob. 
     OTT-Controlled DA 
     Regarding OTT-controlled DA, the keyword detection is done by the OTT DA and the request is fulfilled in the OTT cloud. Sessions are initiated from the OTT DA towards the operator network. When the request relates to service interaction and/or service manipulation, the OTT DA must use IMS service exposure APIs to access IMS capabilities. An OTT DA may e.g. comprise an OTT DA device such as a smart speaker such as e.g. Amazon echo or Google Home speakers, and e.g. the OTT DA may comprise an application interacting with the IMS network, and an OTT platform. A Service Exposure API when used herein means an API exposing the IMS capabilities to third party applications. These capabilities are for example call handling, message handling, supplementary service handling etc. 
       FIG. 2  depicts an OTT controlled DA. Alice owns the UE and the OTT DA such as an Amazon echo. One of the services that may be invoked is the telephony services or bot, implemented by the operator. 
     In this model, the user Alice invokes the OTT DA, such as e.g. of Amazon or Google by saying “Operator X, call Bob” “Operator X, add Charlie to the call which is a keyword. 
     Keyword detection is done locally in the OTT DA. This voice keyword is streamed to the OTT Skill Platform. Service Exposure is needed in the IMS network to access IMS capabilities from the OTT. Therefore the OTT Skill Platform sends a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)/Representational State Transfer (REST) “add Charlie to the call” to the skill/agent server of the operator. The skill/agent server parses this request and matches the identity to the IMS user identity, e.g. private Id, or public Id, and sends e.g. an HTTP/REST “IMS Service Exposure API addParticipant (Charlie) to an IMS network node. 
     HTTP/REST is a protocol supported between the skill server and the IMS core network. SIP/RTP in the Figures relate to the IMS protocol. 
     Note that this model does not support the in-call DA case as the DA has no knowledge of ongoing sessions in the operator network. 
     Operator-OTT Delegated DA 
     Regarding Operator/OTT-delegated DA, media is handled by the operator. Keyword detection is performed by the OTT DA such as an OTT device e.g. a smart speaker, which e.g. may be a conference party. Fulfillment of the request done by the OTT DA application. 
       FIG. 3  depicts an Operator-OTT delegated DA. This model, the user such as Alice may, in the middle of a call, referred to as conference, invoke her favorite OTT DA, e.g. of Google, or Amazon, using its keyword. Alice says: “DA, I want to know what the capital of Spain is” wherein, “DA” is the keyword and “I want to know what the capital of Spain” is the intent”. Only the voice from the user Alice is going up to the OTT DA, referred to as the OTT DA platform. To support this, the OTT DA must be in the call when the user Alice makes her request, the OTT DA becomes a conference participant. The OTT DA detects keyword and fulfills the request in the same call. Fulfills the request means that the OTT DA analyzes the user intent and will proceed with the logic to fulfill it. In the example below it will consult some sources and it will answer “The capital of Spain is Madrid”. When the user Alice&#39;s request is related to the IMS network, the OTT DA must use the Service Exposure APIs to access the IMS capabilities in the IMS network. This is performed by the OTT DA sending to the Skill/Server agent, a HTTP/REST “Keyword detect and request fulfillment”. The Skill/Server agent then sends an HTTP/REST “IMS exposed APIs” IMS node. The IMS node then will use the IMS exposed API-s needed to fullfill the user&#39;s request. E.g. make a call to a person, or the keyword detect information is not included in the HTTPREST. The keyword detect is a trigger for the skill server to start certain logic, but the info about the keyword is never transmitted anywhere else. 
     SUMMARY 
     As a part of developing embodiments herein the inventors identified a problem which first will be discussed. 
     In the Operator-OTT delegated DA model, described above, the media of both call participants is reaching the served user&#39;s Digital Assistant by default. 
     However, participants in the call with the served user don&#39;t necessarily consent to their media being sent to the OTT DA. I.e., if Alice calls Bob and she has Google as an OTT DA Bob does not want his audio to be uploaded to the OTT DA e.g. in the Google cloud or Amazon cloud or ant OTT cloud, without his consent. 
     On the other hand, if the media of the participants is not sent to the OTT DA, it is limiting the number of use cases that are possible to implement. For example, recording a call by the OTT DA, or the OTT DA being shared among all the participants. 
     Thus, if a participant&#39;s media is uploaded to the OTT DA it causes a privacy problem, and if a participants media is not uploaded to the OTT DA it limits the number of use cases that can be implemented. 
     An object of embodiments herein is improve the performance of a communications network using OTT DAs. 
     According to an aspect of embodiments herein, the object is achieved by a method performed by a network node, for handling access to sharing media in a media session in an Over The Top, OTT Digital Assistant, DA. The media shall be shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in a communications network. The first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA. The network node receives a request for access from the OTT DA. The request for access relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA. The network node forwards the request to an IP Multimedia Subsystem, IMS, node in the communications network, to trigger the IMS node to switch on the sharing of media in the media session in the OTT DA for the second participant B, when authorised by the participant B. 
     According to another aspect of embodiments herein, the object is achieved by a method performed by an IP Multimedia Subsystem, IMS, node, for handling access to sharing media in a media session in an Over The Top, OTT Digital Assistant, DA. The media shall be shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in a communications network. The first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA. The IMS node receives a request for access from a network node. The request relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media of the media session in the OTT DA. The request is received via the OTT DA. The IMS node sends a request to the second participant B to authorise the sharing of the media of the media session in the OTT DA for the second participant B. The IMS node is then triggered to switch on the sharing of media of the media session in the OTT DA for the second participant B, when authorised by the participant B. 
     According to a further aspect of embodiments herein, the object is achieved by a method performed by an Over The Top, OTT Digital Assistant, DA, for handling access to sharing media in a media session in the OTT DA. The media shall be shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in a communications network. The first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA. 
     The OTT DA receives a request for access from the first participant A. The request relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media of the media session in the OTT DA. The request is received as a intent chosen by the first participant A to activate a request for access. 
     Triggered by the intent, the OTT DA sends the request via a network node server to an IP Multimedia Subsystem, IMS, node in the communications network, to trigger the IMS node  130  to switch on the sharing of media in the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B when authorised by the second participant B. 
     According to a yet further aspect of embodiments herein, the object is achieved by a network node configured to handle access to sharing media in a media session in an Over The Top, OTT Digital Assistant, DA. The media shall be shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in a communications network. The first participant A is adapted to have access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA. The network node is further configured to: 
     Receive from the OTT DA, a request for access, which request is adapted to relate to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to share media of the media session in the OTT DA, and 
     forward the request to an IP Multimedia Subsystem, IMS, node in the communications network, to trigger the IMS node to switch on the sharing of media of the media session in the OTT DA for the second participant B when authorised by the participant B. 
     According to an aspect of embodiments herein, the object is achieved by an IMS node configured to handle access to sharing media of a media session in an Over The Top, OTT Digital Assistant, DA. The media is to be shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in a communications network. The first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA. The IMS node is further configured to: 
     Receive a request for access from a network node, which request relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media of the media session in the OTT DA, which request is adapted to be received via the OTT DA, send a request to the second participant B to authorise the sharing of the media of the media session in the OTT DA for the second participant B, and trigger to switch on the sharing of media of the media session in the OTT DA for the second participant B, when authorised by the participant B. 
     According to another aspect of embodiments herein, the object is achieved by an Over The Top, OTT Digital Assistant, DA, configured to handling access to sharing media in a media session in the OTT DA. The media is adapted to be shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in a communications network. The first participant A is adapted to have access to share media in the media session in the OTT DA. The OTT DA is further configured to: 
     Receive a request for access from the first participant A, which request for access is adapted to relate to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to share media of the media session in the OTT DA, and which request is adapted to be received as a intent chosen by the first participant A to activate a request for access, and 
     triggered by the intent, send the request for access via a network node agent server to an IP Multimedia Subsystem, IMS, node in the communications network  100 , to trigger the IMS node to switch on the sharing of media in the media session in the OTT DA for the second participant B, when authorised by the second participant B. 
     An advantage of embodiments herein is that this mechanism allows the OTT DA to get not just the media coming from its served first user but from all the call participants such as the second user, after they consent to it. The OTT DA may then implement use cases such as recording and storing a call in the OTT DA or sharing the OTT DA such as a DA among all call participants. 
     Another advantage of embodiments herein is the respect of regulations and privacy of user&#39;s. Further, it is possible to share a Digital Assistant among the call participants and to implement services like Call Translation and Call Recording. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Examples of embodiments herein are described in more detail with reference to attached drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic block diagram illustrating prior art. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic block diagram illustrating prior art. 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic block diagram illustrating prior art. 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic block diagram illustrating embodiments of a communications network. 
         FIG. 5  is a sequence diagram depicting an embodiments of a method in a communications network. 
         FIG. 6  is a flowchart depicting embodiments of a method in a OTT DA. 
         FIG. 7  is a flowchart depicting embodiments of a method in a network node. 
         FIG. 8  is a flowchart depicting embodiments of a method in an IMS node. 
         FIG. 9  is a schematic overview depicting embodiments of a communications network. 
         FIGS. 10 a  and  b    are schematic block diagrams illustrating embodiments of a network node. 
         FIGS. 11 a  and  b    are schematic block diagrams illustrating embodiments of an IMS node. 
         FIGS. 12 a  and  b    are schematic block diagrams illustrating embodiments of an OTT DA. 
         FIG. 13  schematically illustrates a telecommunication network connected via an intermediate network to a host computer. 
         FIG. 14  is a generalized block diagram of a host computer communicating via a base station with a user equipment over a partially wireless connection. 
         FIGS. 15 to 18  are flowcharts illustrating methods implemented in a communication system including a host computer, a base station and a user equipment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Example embodiments herein provide an API exposed by an IMS network node, referred to as IMS node, so that a DA platform, also referred to as DA OTT, OTT client and OTT DA, can request access to media related to the participants in a conference call, only when their consent is granted. 
     Since the users participating in the call may not have a contractual relationship with the OTT DA related to the DA platform, an information message will be be sent to the participant. This message may e.g. be an audio or text message. Depending on the regulations, if explicit consent is required, the IMS node must request for the participants, i.e. user&#39;s input and get the consent. 
     The network media control function may ensure that the media of all consensual participants will then be uploaded to the OTT DA. The consent may apply only for the duration of the session. 
     Embodiments herein may standardize an API to:
         Trigger the request to the IMS node in the IMS network to switch on/off the media towards the OTT DA.   Send an information message to all participants in the call with the consent request.   If explicit consent is needed, send a consent request and collect the answer from all participants. Only the media of those consenting will be included in the media leg toward the OTT DA.       

     New API may be provided: 
     accessMediaParticipants (participant list, on off, info message) 
     Parameters:
         participant list, a list of participants the OTT DA wants to access the media.   info message, a message informing the participants user about whether the DA is accessing their media.   on/off, indicates whether the access to the media should be toggled on or off.       

     Returns: consentanswer_list is an answer from participants giving their consent. It should be noted that the participant identities may be obfuscated. 
     This mechanism allows the OTT DA to get not just the media coming from its served user but from all the call participants, after they consent to it. The OTT DA may then implement use cases such as e.g. recording and storing a call in the OTT platform or sharing the OTT DA among all call participants. 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic overview depicting a communications network  100  wherein embodiments herein may be implemented. The communications network  100  may be a wireless communications network and comprises one or more RANs  104  and one or more CNs  106 . The wireless communications network  100  may use 5G NR but may further use a number of other different technologies, such as, (LTE), LTE-Advanced, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Global System for Mobile communications/enhanced Data rate for GSM Evolution (GSM/EDGE), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), just to mention a few possible implementations. 
     Network nodes operate in the wireless communications network  100 , such as one or more radio network nodes  110  providing radio coverage to UEs in the 
     Each radio network node  110  provides radio coverage over a geographical area by means of antenna beams. The geographical area may be referred to as a cell, a service area, beam or a group of beams. The radio network node  110  may be a transmission and reception point e.g. a radio access network node such as a base station, e.g. a radio base station such as a NodeB, an evolved Node B (eNB, eNode B), an NR Node B (gNB), a base transceiver station, a radio remote unit, an Access Point Base Station, a base station router, a transmission arrangement of a radio base station, a stand-alone access point, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) access point, an Access Point Station (AP STA), an access controller, a UE acting as an access point or a peer in a Device to Device (D2D) communication, or any other network unit capable of communicating with a UE within the cell served by the radio network node  110  depending e.g. on the radio access technology and terminology used. 
     UEs such as a first UE A and a second UE B operate in the communication network  100 . The UEs A and B may e.g. be a mobile station, a non-access point (non-AP) STA, a STA, a user equipment and/or a wireless terminals, an NB-IoT device, an eMTC device and a CAT-M device, a WiFi device, an LTE device and an NR device communicate via one or more Access Networks (AN), e.g. RAN, to one or more core networks (CN). It should be understood by the skilled in the art that “UE” is a non-limiting term which means any terminal, wireless communication terminal, wireless device, Device to Device (D2D) terminal, or node e.g. smart phone, laptop, mobile phone, sensor, relay, mobile tablets, television units or even a small base station communicating within a cell. According to example embodiments herein, the UEs A and B are connected in call, referred to as a conference wherein first UE A is a first participant A in the call and wherein the second UE B is a second participant B in the call. 
     An OTT DA  125  operates in the communications network  100 . The OTT DA  125  may e.g. be a DA comprised in a an OTT DA platform also referred to as a OTT platform  151 , e.g. in a cloud  101 . When used herein, the OTT DA  125  and the OTT platform  151  may be seen as one unit, i.e. that the OTT DA  125  is associated with or comprises the OTT platform  151 . An OTT client is the entity that sends the requests towards the skills server. 
     The CN further comprises a core network node such as the IMS node  130  comprised in an IMS network. the IMS node  130  is used for serving requests coming via a Service Exposure API. 
     The IMS node  130  may be connected to a network node  150 . The network node  150  may be located in the cloud  101  as depicted in  FIG. 1 , in the CN or in a third Party domain of the communications network. The network node  150  may be a server such as a skill server or an agent server. 
     Furthermore, the OTT DA  125  and the network node  150  may be collocated nodes, stand-alone nodes or distributed nodes comprised in the cloud  101 . 
     The method will first be described from a helicopter perspective as a signalling diagram showing the involved nodes such as the OTT DA  125 , the network node  110 , and the IMS node  130  with reference to  FIG. 5 . Thereafter embodiments of the method as seen from the perspective of each respective net the OTT DA  125 , the network node  110 , and the IMS node  130  will be individually described one by one with reference to respective flow charts of  FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 . 
     An example scenario of embodiments herein before starting the method may be: 
     Alice is a OTT DA  125  user, she owns the OTT DA  125  which is in this example a DA. Alice is in a conference call with another user Bob. Alice is a first participant A in the conference call and Bob is a second participant B in the conference call. Alice has already access to the OTT DA  125 , e.g. since she owns it. The OTT DA  125  may be seen as a participant in the conference call. However, Bob has not access to the OTT DA  125  yet, so his media is not shared at the OTT DA  125 . The conference call may be referred to as call or media call. 
     Alice wants to share media in the OTT DA  125  from other participants in the conference call, such as the second participant B. 
     Example embodiments of a method performed in the communications network  100  for handling access to sharing media in a media session in the OTT DA  125 , will now be described with reference to a sequence diagram depicted in  FIG. 5 . In this example the first participant A is referred to as Alice, and the second participant B a is referred to as Bob. 
     Action  501 . Alice sets up a call such as a media session with Bob. Initial media of the media session flows from the IMS Core Network, such as the IMS node  130 , to and from Alice and Bob. At this point also the media from Alice is going towards OTT DA  125 . 
     Action  502 . Media from the OTT DA  125  is sent to both Alice and Bob, but no media from Bob is sent in the OTT DA  125  respecting Bob&#39;s privacy. In this example, the first participant Alice is associated to e.g. owns the OTT DA  125 . Therefore, only media such as the voice from Alice is, in some embodiments automatically, uploaded to the OTT DA  125 , in this example represented by a OTT. 
     Action  503 . Alice says one or more intents to the OTT DA  125 , such as e.g.: DA, request access for the participant Bob, or DA, request access for all participants, if more participants than Bob. 
     Action  504 . The OTT DA  125  detects the one or more keywords said by Alice. The keywords will trigger the OTT DA  125 , e.g. its associated OTT DA platform  151 . The OTT DA  125  may just detect the keyword, later on it is up to the OTT DA platform  151  to process the intents and send to the configured network node  150  such as the skill server, to act according to some predetermined rules. In this example this starts the process of request an accept from Bob if Bob accepts to share his media on the OTT DA  125 . The accept is also referred to as authorization and consensus. 
     Action  505 . Thus, upon detecting the one or more keywords, the OTT DA  125  sends via the OTT DA platform  151  to the network node  150  to process the intents and to send a request for access, which in this example is an agent server. The request for access relates to the first participant Alice requesting access for the second participant Bob to share media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . 
     Action  506 . Based on the one or more keywords, the network node  150  may retrieve e.g. create information e.g. a list of participants comprising at least the second participant Bob, that the first participant Alice wishes to share the media with in the OTT DA  125 . This means that the OTT DA  125  detects the keyword if it is wanted that the second participant Bob to be able to use it, or the OTT platform  151  of the OTT DA  125  if it is wanted to do services as recording. 
     The network node  150  has access to the IMS node  130  and therefore sends the request for access IMS node  130 , requesting access for Bob to share media of the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The request for access may comprise the list of participants that the first participant Alice wishes to share the media with in the OTT DA  125 . 
     Action  507 . The IMS node  130  receives the request for access from the network node  150 , e.g. comprising the list of participants that the first participant Alice wishes to share the media with in the OTT DA  125 . Upon receiving the request for access list of participants comprising at least the second participant Bob, the IMS node  130  sends a request to the second participant Bob to authorise the sharing of the media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant Bob. 
     Action  508 . Bob receives the request and responds in Action  509 , to the IMS node  130 , whether or not the sharing of the media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for Bob is authorised. 
     Action  509  The IMS node  130  receives the response from Bob, and only triggers to switch on the sharing of media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant Bob if authorized by Bob in the response. 
     Action  510 . So, if authorized by Bob also media from Bob is sent to the OTT DA  125 . 
     The media is shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in a communications network  100 , which first participant A has access to sharing B&#39;s media in the media session with the OTT DA  125 , wherein the OTT DA  125  may be a participant on the media session. 
     Method in the OTT DA  125   
     Example embodiments of a method performed by a method performed by the OTT DA  125  for handling an access to share media in a media session in the OTT DA  125 , will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in  FIG. 6 . 
     The media shall be shared between the first participant A and the second participant B in the communications network  100 . The first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The OTT DA  125  e.g. is a participant on the media session Further, in some embodiments, the network node  150  is collocated with the OTT DA  125 . 
     As mentioned above, the first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . This means that initially, only the first participant A e.g. 
     Alice&#39;s media is being sent towards the OTT DA  125  also referred to as the digital assistant, meanwhile the second participant B e.g. Bob can listen and/or see the media coming from both Alice and the OTT DA  125 . 
     Action  601   
     The OTT DA  125  receives a request for access from the first participant A. The request relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media of the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The request is received as a intent chosen by the first participant A to activate a request for access. The request is received as an intent. Keyword is used to wake up the logic, intent is the logic requested. As mentioned above the request comes as a hotword to wake up the DA” and “keywords defining the intent or request. 
     E.g. the first participant Alice says one or more intents to the OTT DA  125 , such as e.g.: DA, request access for the second participant Bob, 
     Action  602   
     Triggered by the intent, the OTT DA  125  sends the request via a network node  150 , such as an agent server, to the IMS node  130  in the communications network  100 . May be referred to as triggered by the keyword, the OTT DA  125  sends the request corresponding to the intent. This is to trigger the IMS node  130  to switch on the sharing of media in the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B when authorised by the second participant B. 
     Method in the Network Node  150   
     Example embodiments of a method performed by a method performed by the network node  150  for handling an access to share media in a media session in the OTT DA  125 , will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in  FIG. 7 . The media shall be shared between the first participant A and the second participant B in the communications network  100 . The first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The OTT DA  125  e.g. is a participant on the media session The network node  150  may e.g. be represented by any one out of: an agent server, a skill server, an actions server, a capsules server. Further, in some embodiments, the network node  150  is collocated with the OTT DA  125 . 
     The method comprises the following actions, which actions may be taken in any suitable order. 
     Action  701   
     E.g. the first participant A, who already has access to share media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 , asks for participants such as all other participants in the conference call including the second participant B, to have access to share media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . This is performed to start the process of receiving consensus also referred to as acknowledge, from the other participants before accessing the other participants to share media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . Thus, the network node  150  receives a request for access from the OTT DA  125 . The request for access relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The request is sent to the network node  150 , such as e.g. the skill or agent server, since it acts like a gateway into the IMS network and knows to which IMS node the request shall be sent. The IMS node  130  exposes IMS capabilities via some API-s. The OTT cloud cannot really speak the IMS “language” so the network node such as the skill server is needed to analyse the request coming from the OTT cloud and translate it to the IMS API-s. 
     Action  702   
     As mentioned above, the network node  150 , such as e.g. the skill or agent server, knows where to send the request and therefore forwards the request to the correct IMS node, here the IMS node  130 . The network node  150  forwards the request to the IMS node  130  in the communications network  100 . This is to trigger the IMS node  130  to switch on the sharing of media in the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B, when authorised by the participant B. The IMS node  130  will take care of the obtaining of the authorizations from the concerning participants, by sending requests to each respective concerning participant. The IMS node  130  will trigger to switch on the sharing of media in the media session in the OTT DA  125  for each respective participant, including the second participant B, only when authorised by the respective participant. 
     Method in the IMS Node  130   
     Example embodiments of a method performed by a method performed by the IMS node  130  for handling an access to share media in a media session in the OTT DA  125 , will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in  FIG. 8 . The media shall be shared between the first participant A and the second participant B in the communications network  100 . The first participant A has access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The OTT DA  125  e.g. is a participant on the media session 
     The method comprises the following actions, which actions may be taken in any suitable order. 
     Action  801   
     In some embodiments, the IMS node  130  exposes an Application Program Interface (API) to the network node  150 . It may only be the network node  150  that knows how to talk to the IMS node and can translate from the OTT platform or OTT DA  125  “language” to the IMS “language”. Every different OTT DA have a different interface, so it is up to the network node  150  to translate to the one that IMS is offering. The wording to expose the API when used herein, means to enable some actions to be accessed through some means. The API comprises parameters for making the request for access a participants, comprising the second participant B, to share media of a media session in the OTT DA  125 . And further, to receive from participants, comprising the second participant B, an authorisation for sharing of the media in the OTT DA  125  in return to a request. API parameters when used herein means the needed input for the requested actions to be executed. 
     The API parameters may relate to any one out of:
         A list of participants, comprising the second participant B, that the OTT DA  125  wants to access the media,   a message informing the participants, comprising the second participant (B), about whether the OTT DA  125  is accessing their media, and   an indication whether the access to the media should be switched on or off.       

     Action  802   
     The IMS node  130  receives a request for access from the network node  150 . The request relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media of the media session in the OTT DA  125 . 
     Action  803   
     The IMS node  130  sends a request to the second participant B to authorise the sharing of the media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B. 
     Action  804   
     The IMS node  130  is then triggered to switch on the sharing of media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B, when authorised by the participant B. 
     Embodiments herein such as mentioned above will now be further described and exemplified with the following example. The text below is applicable to and may be combined with any suitable embodiment described above. 
     Initial Media Flows from the IMS Node  130   
     In this example scenario, depicted in  FIG. 9 , Alice is the OTT DA  125  user, she owns the OTT DA  125  which is in this example a DA. Alice is in a conference call with another user Bob. Alice is a first participant A in the conference call and Bob is a second participant B in the conference call. Alice has already access to the OTT DA  125 , e.g. since she owns it. The OTT DA  125  may be seen as a participant in the conference call. However, Bob has not access to the OTT DA  125  yet, so his media is not shared at the OTT DA  125 . The conference call may be referred to as call or media call. 
     Alice wants to share media in the OTT DA  125  from other participants in the conference call, such as the second participant B. 
     It should be noted that the wordings Alice and first participant A may be used interchangeable. Further, the wordings Bob and second participant B may be used interchangeable. The wordings OTT platform, and OTT DA  125  and Digital Assistant (DA) may be used interchangeable. 
     This means that initially, only the first participant A e.g. Alice&#39;s media is being sent towards the OTT DA  125  also referred to as the digital assistant, meanwhile the second participant B e.g. Bob can listen and/or see the media coming from both Alice and the OTT DA  125 . 
     This means that initially default status when setting up a call with Bob is that no media from Bob is sent to the OTT DA  125  respecting Bob&#39;s privacy. Therefore: The OTT platform  151  of the OTT DA  125  cannot perform any service involving Bob&#39;s media, like serving request from Bob or do any king of processing of Bob&#39;s media.
         Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP) data is only sent/received by the IMS node  130  to and from the OTT DA  125  for Alice.   RTP data is sent/received by the IMS node  130  both to and from Alice for the OTT DA  125  and Bob for Alice.   RTP data is sent/received by the IMS node  130  both to and from Bob for the OTT DA  125  and Bob, for Bob.       

     In other words, initial media flows from the IMS node  130  according to the following: Only the voice from Alice is going to the OTT DA  125 , media from OTT DA  125  is sent to both Alice and Bob. Media from Bob is sent to Alice. 
     Request Access for Media Call or Call Participants 
     According to the example, the API exposed to the network node  150  by the IMS node  130  comprises Request consent and access (on/off) to the media. This e.g. means that if it is “on” the IMS node  130  will request the consent from Bob and in affirmative case the IMS node  130  will forward Bobs media to the OTT DA  125 . If it is “off” then the IMS node  130  will stop forwarding Bob&#39;s media to the OTT DA  125 . 
     Access for media of call participant(s) is requested, e.g. Alice says the intents “DA, request access for all participants&#39; media”. The keyword detection is done in-call by the OTT DA  125 , which is one of the call participants. Thus the OTT DA  125  detects the keywords and request access to the network node  150  which e.g. may be a Skill server or an agent server, by using IMS node exposed APIs: HTTP/REST HotWordDetect request Fulfillment. 
     The network node  150  has access to the IMS node  130  via API. Thereby the OTT platform  151  of the OTT DA  125  may via the network node  150 , access the IMS node  130  and perform services e.g. towards a node inside the IMS network, this may be any Application Server where the service exposure APIs are available. This may be implemented in the Multimedia Telephony service (MMTel) Application Server (AS) for instance or develop one specific just for this. Service Exposure is needed. This means that the Application Server inside the IMS will serve the requests got using the exposed APIs. Thus the network node  150  forwards the request to the IMS node  130  using IMS node exposed APIs: HTTP/REST, which is an example of what kind of interface or “language” the API is using, AccessMediaParticipant. 
     The IMS node  130  sends and audio or a text message to the call participant such as to Bob, asking or informing about the media access request, also referred to as requesting authorisation from the second participant B. 
     IMS exposed APIs may comprise AUDIO or TEXT informing or asking for media access. 
     Depending on the legal regulations, it may happen that the call participants need to give explicit permission or only need to be informed about the media access request. Once the request has been granted by the IMS node  130 , the media flows will end up with RTP data flow is sent/received by the IMS node  130  to and from the OTT DA  125  for both Alice and Bob. 
     This means that the OTT DA  125  has now access to some participants&#39;, e.g. the second participant Bob&#39;s or all participants&#39; media depending if the access has been granted or not, i.e. if authorized by them. The wordings media and data may be used interchangeable. 
     It should be noted that this example embodiment may be generalized for the case where there are many participants in the call like in a conference call. 
     Thus, embodiments herein provide exposure from the IMS network such as the IMS node  130  to share the user&#39;s OTT DA  125  with the call participants after gathering their consent. 
     To perform the method actions above, the network node  150  is configured to handle an access to sharing media in a media session in the OTT DA  125 , and the network node  150  may comprise the arrangement depicted in  FIG. 10 a    and  FIG. 10 b   . The media shall be shared between the first participant A and a second participant B in the communications network  100 . The first participant A is adapted to have access to sharing media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The OTT DA  125  may be adapted to be a participant on the media session. 
     The network node  150  may comprise an input and output interface  1000  depicted in  FIG. 10 a   , configured to communicate e.g. with the IMS node  130  and the OTT DA  125 . The input and output interface  1000  may comprise a receiver (not shown) and a transmitter (not shown). 
     The network node  150  is configured to, e.g. by means of a receiving unit  1010  in the network node  110  depicted in  FIG. 10 b   , receive from the OTT DA  125 , a request for access. The request is adapted to relate to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to share media of the media session in the OTT DA  125 . 
     The network node  150  is further configured to, e.g. by means of a forwarding unit  1020  in the network node  110  depicted in  FIG. 10 b   , forward the request to an IMS node  130  in the communications network  100 , to trigger the IMS node  130  to switch on the sharing of media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B when authorised by the participant B. 
     The network node  150  may be adapted to be represented by a server. Different OTT&#39;s use different names for these servers. E.g. any one out of: an agent server, a skill server as used by Amazon Alexa, Actions used by Google, Capsules used by Samsung and there are many others. 
     The network node  150  may be adapted to be collocated with the OTT DA  125 . 
     The embodiments herein may be implemented through a respective processor or one or more processors, such as a processor  1030  of a processing circuitry in the network node  150  depicted in  FIG. 10 a   , together with a respective computer program code for performing the functions and actions of the embodiments herein. The program code mentioned above may also be provided as a computer program product, for instance in the form of a data carrier carrying computer program code for performing the embodiments herein when being loaded into the network node  150 . One such carrier may be in the form of a CD ROM disc. It is however feasible with other data carriers such as a memory stick. The computer program code may furthermore be provided as pure program code on a server and downloaded to the network node  150 . 
     The network node  110  may further comprise a memory  1040  depicted in  FIG. 10 a   , comprising one or more memory units to store data on. The memory  1040  comprises instructions executable by the processor  1030 . The memory  1040  is arranged to be used to store e.g. intents, instructions, configurations and applications to perform the methods herein when being executed in the network node  150 . 
     Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the units in the radio network node  150  mentioned above may refer to a combination of analogue and digital circuits, and/or one or more processors configured with software and/or firmware, e.g. stored in the network node  150  that when executed by the respective one or more processors such as the processors described above. One or more of these processors, as well as the other digital hardware, may be included in a single Application-Specific Integrated Circuitry (ASIC), or several processors and various digital hardware may be distributed among several separate components, whether individually packaged or assembled into a system-on-a-chip (SoC). 
     In some embodiments, a computer program  1050  comprises instructions, which when executed by the respective at least one processor  1030 , cause the at least one processor  1030  of the network node  110  to perform the actions above. 
     In some embodiments, a carrier  1060  comprises the computer program  1050 , wherein the carrier  1060  is one of an electronic signal, an optical signal, an electromagnetic signal, a magnetic signal, an electric signal, a radio signal, a microwave signal, or a computer-readable storage medium. 
     To perform the method actions above the IMS node  130  is configured to handle access to sharing media of a media session in the device  125 , and the IMS node  130  may comprise the arrangement depicted in  FIG. 11 a    and  FIG. 11 b   . The media is to be shared between a first participant A and a second participant B in the communications network  100 . The first participant A has access to share media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The OTT DA  125  may be adapted to be a participant on the media session 
     The IMS node  130  may comprise an input and output interface  1100  depicted in  FIG. 11 a   , configured to communicate e.g. with the network node  150  and the OTT DA  125 . The input and output interface  1100  may comprise a receiver (not shown) and a transmitter (not shown). 
     The IMS node  130  is configured to, e.g. by means of a receiving unit  1110  in the IMS node  130  depicted in  FIG. 11 b   , receive a request for access from the network node  150 . The request relates to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to sharing media of the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The request is adapted to be received via the OTT DA  125 . 
     The IMS node  130  is further configured to, e.g. by means of a sending unit  1120  in the IMS node  130  depicted in  FIG. 11 b   , send a request to the second participant B to authorise the sharing of the media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B. 
     The IMS node  130  is configured to, e.g. by means of a triggering unit  1130  in the IMS node  130  depicted in  FIG. 11 b   , trigger to switch on the sharing of media of the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B, when authorised by the participant B. 
     In some embodiments, the IMS node  130  is configured to, e.g. by means of a exposing unit  1140  in the IMS node  130  depicted in  FIG. 11 b   , expose to the network node  150 , an API comprising parameters for making the request for access a participants comprising the second participant B, to share media of a media session in the OTT DA  125  and to receive from participants comprising the second participant B, an authorisation for sharing of the media in the OTT DA  125  in return to a request. 
     The API parameters may be adapted to relate to any one out of: A list of participants, comprising the second participant B, the OTT DA  125  wants to access the media, a message informing the participants, comprising the second participant B, about whether the OTT DA  125  is accessing their media, and an indication whether the access to the media should be switched on or off. 
     The embodiments herein may be implemented through a respective processor or one or more processors, such as a processor  1150  of a processing circuitry in the IMS node  130  depicted in  FIG. 3 , together with a respective computer program code for performing the functions and actions of the embodiments herein. The program code mentioned above may also be provided as a computer program product, for instance in the form of a data carrier carrying computer program code for performing the embodiments herein when being loaded into the IMS node  130 . One such carrier may be in the form of a CD ROM disc. It is however feasible with other data carriers such as a memory stick. The computer program code may furthermore be provided as pure program code on a server and downloaded to the IMS node  130 . 
     The IMS node  130  may further comprise a memory  1160  comprising one or more memory units to store data on. The memory comprises instructions executable by the processor  1150 . The memory  1160  is arranged to be used to store e.g. intents, instructions, configurations and applications to perform the methods herein when being executed in the IMS node  130 . 
     Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the units in the radio IMS node  130  mentioned above may refer to a combination of analogue and digital circuits, and/or one or more processors configured with software and/or firmware, e.g. stored in the IMS node  130  that when executed by the respective one or more processors such as the processors described above. One or more of these processors, as well as the other digital hardware, may be included in a single Application-Specific Integrated Circuitry (ASIC), or several processors and various digital hardware may be distributed among several separate components, whether individually packaged or assembled into a system-on-a-chip (SoC). 
     In some embodiments, a computer program  1170  comprises instructions, which when executed by the respective at least one processor  1150 , cause the at least one processor  1150  of the network node  110  to perform the actions above. 
     In some embodiments, a carrier  1180  comprises the computer program  1170 , wherein the carrier  1180  is one of an electronic signal, an optical signal, an electromagnetic signal, a magnetic signal, an electric signal, a radio signal, a microwave signal, or a computer-readable storage medium. 
     To perform the method actions above, the OTT DA  125  is configured to handle access to sharing media in a media session in an OTT DA  125 , and the OTT DA  125  may comprise the arrangement depicted in  FIG. 12 a    and  FIG. 12 b   . The media is adapted to be shared between the first participant A and the second participant B in the communications network  100 . The first participant A is adapted to have access to share media in the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The OTT DA  125  may be adapted to be a participant in the media session. 
     The OTT DA  125  may comprise an input and output interface  400  depicted in  FIG. 12 a   , configured to communicate e.g. with the network  150  and the IMS node  130 . The input and output interface  1100  may comprise a receiver (not shown) and a transmitter (not shown). 
     The OTT DA  125  is configured to, e.g. by means of a receiving unit  1210  in the network node  110  depicted in  FIG. 12 b   , receive a request for access from the first participant A. The request for access is adapted to relate to the first participant A requesting access for the second participant B to share media of the media session in the OTT DA  125 . The request is adapted to be received as a intent chosen by the first participant A to activate a request for access. 
     The OTT DA  125  is further configured to, e.g. by means of a sending unit  1220  in the network node  110  depicted in  FIG. 12 b   , when triggered by the intent, send the request for access via a network node  150  agent server to the IMS node  130  in the communications network, to trigger the IMS node  130  to switch on the sharing of media in the media session in the OTT DA  125  for the second participant B, when authorised by the second participant B. 
     The embodiments herein may be implemented through a respective processor or one or more processors, such as a processor  1230  of a processing circuitry in the OTT DA  125  depicted in  FIG. 12 a   , together with a respective computer program code for performing the functions and actions of the embodiments herein. The program code mentioned above may also be provided as a computer program product, for instance in the form of a data carrier carrying computer program code for performing the embodiments herein when being loaded into the OTT DA  125 . One such carrier may be in the form of a CD ROM disc. It is however feasible with other data carriers such as a memory stick. The computer program code may furthermore be provided as pure program code on a server and downloaded to the OTT DA  125 . 
     The OTT DA  125  may further comprise a memory  1240  comprising one or more memory units to store data on. The memory comprises instructions executable by the processor  1230 . The memory  1240  is arranged to be used to store e.g. e.g. intents, instructions, configurations and applications to perform the methods herein when being executed in the OTT DA  125 . 
     Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the units in the OTT DA  125  mentioned above may refer to a combination of analogue and digital circuits, and/or one or more processors configured with software and/or firmware, e.g. stored in the OTT DA  125  that when executed by the respective one or more processors such as the processors described above. One or more of these processors, as well as the other digital hardware, may be included in a single Application-Specific Integrated Circuitry (ASIC), or several processors and various digital hardware may be distributed among several separate components, whether individually packaged or assembled into a system-on-a-chip (SoC). 
     In some embodiments, a computer program  1250  comprises instructions, which when executed by the respective at least one processor  1230 , cause the at least one processor  1230  of the OTT DA  125   10  to perform the actions above. 
     In some embodiments, a carrier  1260  comprises the computer program  1250 , wherein the carrier  1260  is one of an electronic signal, an optical signal, an electromagnetic signal, a magnetic signal, an electric signal, a radio signal, a microwave signal, or a computer-readable storage medium. 
     FURTHER EXTENSIONS AND VARIATIONS 
     With reference to  FIG. 13 , in accordance with an embodiment, a communication system includes a telecommunication network  3210  such as the wireless communications network  100 , e.g. a NR network, such as a 3GPP-type cellular network, which comprises an access network  3211 , such as a radio access network, and a core network  3214 . The access network  3211  comprises a plurality of base stations  3212   a ,  3212   b ,  3212   c , such as the network node  110 , access nodes, AP STAs NBs, eNBs, gNBs or other types of wireless access points, each defining a corresponding coverage area  3213   a ,  3213   b ,  3213   c . Each base station  3212   a ,  3212   b ,  3212   c  is connectable to the core network  3214  over a wired or wireless connection  3215 . A first user equipment (UE) e.g. the UE A such as a Non-AP STA  3291  located in coverage area  3213   c  is configured to wirelessly connect to, or be paged by, the corresponding base station  3212   c . A second UE  3292  e.g. the first or second radio node  110 ,  120  or such as a Non-AP STA in coverage area  3213   a  is wirelessly connectable to the corresponding base station  3212   a . While a plurality of UEs  3291 ,  3292  are illustrated in this example, the disclosed embodiments are equally applicable to a situation where a sole UE is in the coverage area or where a sole UE is connecting to the corresponding base station  3212 . 
     The telecommunication network  3210  is itself connected to a host computer  3230 , which may be embodied in the hardware and/or software of a standalone server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server or as processing resources in a server farm. The host computer  3230  may be under the ownership or control of a service provider, or may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The connections  3221 ,  3222  between the telecommunication network  3210  and the host computer  3230  may extend directly from the core network  3214  to the host computer  3230  or may go via an optional intermediate network  3220 . The intermediate network  3220  may be one of, or a combination of more than one of, a public, private or hosted network; the intermediate network  3220 , if any, may be a backbone network or the Internet; in particular, the intermediate network  3220  may comprise two or more sub-networks (not shown). 
     The communication system of  FIG. 13  as a whole enables connectivity between one of the connected UEs  3291 ,  3292  and the host computer  3230 . The connectivity may be described as an over-the-top (OTT) connection  3250 . The host computer  3230  and the connected UEs  3291 ,  3292  are configured to communicate data and/or signaling via the OTT connection  3250 , using the access network  3211 , the core network  3214 , any intermediate network  3220  and possible further infrastructure (not shown) as intermediaries. The OTT connection  3250  may be transparent in the sense that the participating communication devices through which the OTT connection  3250  passes are unaware of routing of uplink and downlink communications. For example, a base station  3212  may not or need not be informed about the past routing of an incoming downlink communication with data originating from a host computer  3230  to be forwarded (e.g., handed over) to a connected UE  3291 . Similarly, the base station  3212  need not be aware of the future routing of an outgoing uplink communication originating from the UE  3291  towards the host computer  3230 . 
     Example implementations, in accordance with an embodiment, of the UE, base station and host computer discussed in the preceding paragraphs will now be described with reference to  FIG. 14 . In a communication system  3300 , a host computer  3310  comprises hardware  3315  including a communication interface  3316  configured to set up and maintain a wired or wireless connection with an interface of a different communication device of the communication system  3300 . The host computer  3310  further comprises processing circuitry  3318 , which may have storage and/or processing capabilities. In particular, the processing circuitry  3318  may comprise one or more programmable processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. The host computer  3310  further comprises software  3311 , which is stored in or accessible by the host computer  3310  and executable by the processing circuitry  3318 . The software  3311  includes a host application  3312 . The host application  3312  may be operable to provide a service to a remote user, such as a UE  3330  connecting via an OTT connection  3350  terminating at the UE  3330  and the host computer  3310 . In providing the service to the remote user, the host application  3312  may provide user data which is transmitted using the OTT connection  3350 . 
     The communication system  3300  further includes a base station  3320  provided in a telecommunication system and comprising hardware  3325  enabling it to communicate with the host computer  3310  and with the UE  3330 . The hardware  3325  may include a communication interface  3326  for setting up and maintaining a wired or wireless connection with an interface of a different communication device of the communication system  3300 , as well as a radio interface  3327  for setting up and maintaining at least a wireless connection  3370  with a UE  3330  located in a coverage area (not shown in  FIG. 14 ) served by the base station  3320 . The communication interface  3326  may be configured to facilitate a connection  3360  to the host computer  3310 . The connection  3360  may be direct or it may pass through a core network (not shown in  FIG. 14 ) of the telecommunication system and/or through one or more intermediate networks outside the telecommunication system. In the embodiment shown, the hardware  3325  of the base station  3320  further includes processing circuitry  3328 , which may comprise one or more programmable processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. The base station  3320  further has software  3321  stored internally or accessible via an external connection. 
     The communication system  3300  further includes the UE  3330  already referred to. Its hardware  3335  may include a radio interface  3337  configured to set up and maintain a wireless connection  3370  with a base station serving a coverage area in which the UE  3330  is currently located. The hardware  3335  of the UE  3330  further includes processing circuitry  3338 , which may comprise one or more programmable processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. The UE  3330  further comprises software  3331 , which is stored in or accessible by the UE  3330  and executable by the processing circuitry  3338 . The software  3331  includes a client application  3332 . The client application  3332  may be operable to provide a service to a human or non-human user via the UE  3330 , with the support of the host computer  3310 . In the host computer  3310 , an executing host application  3312  may communicate with the executing client application  3332  via the OTT connection  3350  terminating at the UE  3330  and the host computer  3310 . In providing the service to the user, the client application  3332  may receive request data from the host application  3312  and provide user data in response to the request data. The OTT connection  3350  may transfer both the request data and the user data. The client application  3332  may interact with the user to generate the user data that it provides. 
     It is noted that the host computer  3310 , base station  3320  and UE  3330  illustrated in  FIG. 14  may be identical to the host computer  3230 , one of the base stations  3212   a ,  3212   b ,  3212   c  and one of the UEs  3291 ,  3292  of  FIG. 13 , respectively. This is to say, the inner workings of these entities may be as shown in  FIG. 14  and independently, the surrounding network topology may be that of  FIG. 13 . 
     In  FIG. 14 , the OTT connection  3350  has been drawn abstractly to illustrate the communication between the host computer  3310  and the use equipment  3330  via the base station  3320 , without explicit reference to any intermediary devices and the precise routing of messages via these devices. Network infrastructure may determine the routing, which it may be configured to hide from the UE  3330  or from the service provider operating the host computer  3310 , or both. While the OTT connection  3350  is active, the network infrastructure may further take decisions by which it dynamically changes the routing (e.g., on the basis of load balancing consideration or reconfiguration of the network). 
     The wireless connection  3370  between the UE  3330  and the base station  3320  is in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. One or more of the various embodiments improve the performance of OTT services provided to the UE  3330  using the OTT connection  3350 , in which the wireless connection  3370  forms the last segment. More precisely, the teachings of these embodiments may improve the data rate, latency, power consumption and thereby provide benefits such as user waiting time, relaxed restriction on file size, better responsiveness, extended battery lifetime. 
     A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve. There may further be an optional network functionality for reconfiguring the OTT connection  3350  between the host computer  3310  and UE  3330 , in response to variations in the measurement results. The measurement procedure and/or the network functionality for reconfiguring the OTT connection  3350  may be implemented in the software  3311  of the host computer  3310  or in the software  3331  of the UE  3330 , or both. In embodiments, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in association with communication devices through which the OTT connection  3350  passes; the sensors may participate in the measurement procedure by supplying values of the monitored quantities exemplified above, or supplying values of other physical quantities from which software  3311 ,  3331  may compute or estimate the monitored quantities. The reconfiguring of the OTT connection  3350  may include message format, retransmission settings, preferred routing etc.; the reconfiguring need not affect the base station  3320 , and it may be unknown or imperceptible to the base station  3320 . Such procedures and functionalities may be known and practiced in the art. In certain embodiments, measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling facilitating the host computer&#39;s  3310  measurements of throughput, propagation times, latency and the like. The measurements may be implemented in that the software  3311 ,  3331  causes messages to be transmitted, in particular empty or ‘dummy’ messages, using the OTT connection  3350  while it monitors propagation times, errors etc. 
       FIG. 15  is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station such as an AP STA, and a UE such as a Non-AP STA which may be those described with reference to  FIG. 13  and  FIG. 14 . For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to  FIG. 7  will be included in this section. In a first action  3410  of the method, the host computer provides user data. In an optional subaction  3411  of the first action  3410 , the host computer provides the user data by executing a host application. In a second action  3420 , the host computer initiates a transmission carrying the user data to the UE. In an optional third action  3430 , the base station transmits to the UE the user data which was carried in the transmission that the host computer initiated, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In an optional fourth action  3440 , the UE executes a client application associated with the host application executed by the host computer. 
       FIG. 16  is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station such as an AP STA, and a UE such as a Non-AP STA which may be those described with reference to  FIG. 13  and  FIG. 14 . For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to  FIG. 16  will be included in this section. In a first action  3510  of the method, the host computer provides user data. In an optional subaction (not shown) the host computer provides the user data by executing a host application. In a second action  3520 , the host computer initiates a transmission carrying the user data to the UE. The transmission may pass via the base station, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In an optional third action  3530 , the UE receives the user data carried in the transmission. 
       FIG. 17  is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station such as an AP STA, and a UE such as a Non-AP STA which may be those described with reference to  FIG. 13  and  FIG. 14 . For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to  FIG. 17  will be included in this section. In an optional first action  3610  of the method, the UE receives input data provided by the host computer. Additionally or alternatively, in an optional second action  3620 , the UE provides user data. In an optional subaction  3621  of the second action  3620 , the UE provides the user data by executing a client application. In a further optional subaction  3611  of the first action  3610 , the UE executes a client application which provides the user data in reaction to the received input data provided by the host computer. In providing the user data, the executed client application may further consider user input received from the user. Regardless of the specific manner in which the user data was provided, the UE initiates, in an optional third subaction  3630 , transmission of the user data to the host computer. In a fourth action  3640  of the method, the host computer receives the user data transmitted from the UE, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. 
       FIG. 18  is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station such as an AP STA, and a UE such as a Non-AP STA which may be those described with reference to  FIG. 13  and  FIG. 14 . For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to  FIG. 18  will be included in this section. In an optional first action  3710  of the method, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure, the base station receives user data from the UE. In an optional second action  3720 , the base station initiates transmission of the received user data to the host computer. In a third action  3730 , the host computer receives the user data carried in the transmission initiated by the base station. 
     When using the word “comprise” or “comprising” it shall be interpreted as non-limiting, i.e. meaning “consist at least of”. 
     The embodiments herein are not limited to the above described preferred embodiments. Various alternatives, modifications and equivalents may be used.