Patent ID: 8477785

Claim:
A machine-implemented method for processing network traffic of a packet network, the method comprising: receiving, at a mobility gateway device (MGW), a request from a wireless local area network (WLAN) controller of a WLAN for accessing the Internet or a packet core network, the request originated from a user equipment (UE) communicatively coupled to the WLAN; in response to the request, determining by the MGW whether there is an active session associated with the UE over a wireless wide area network (WWAN); and communicating by the MGW an IP address to the WLAN controller that was assigned to the UE during the active session of the WWAN, wherein the WWAN assigned IP address is used by the WLAN controller to identify traffic to/from the user equipment while the UE is communicatively coupled to the WLAN and tunnel the UE traffic between MGW and WLAN controller.