Patent ID: 8606276

Claim:
A telecommunications system for providing mobile communications to mobile user equipment, the system comprising an internet protocol access network operable to provide a facility for mobile communications to mobile user equipment within a coverage area for wireless communication provided by the internet protocol access network, the mobile communications being provided using an internet protocol, a cellular mobile radio network operable to provide a facility for mobile communications to mobile user equipment within a coverage area for wireless communication provided by the cellular mobile radio network, the mobile communications being provided using a packet switched communications channel, in which data is divided into packets and communicated on a communications bearer shared with other data packets and a circuit switched communications channel in which data is communicated on a communications channel having a dedicated bandwidth, wherein a mobile user equipment is configured: to activate a connection on the cellular mobile radio network using the packet switched communications channel whilst receiving a communications service via the internet protocol access network, to communicate via the connection on the packet-switched channel of the cellular mobile radio network in response to a handover event for changing affiliation of the mobile user equipment from the internet protocol access network to the cellular mobile radio network, to establish a connection on the cellular mobile radio network using the circuit switched channel in response to and after the handover event in which the communication service via the internet protocol access network is lost, to continue to communicate via the connection on the packet-switched channel while the connection on the circuit-switched channel is being established, and to communicate via the connection on the circuit-switched channel once the circuit-switched channel has been established.