Location Related Service Experience

Description

Location related service experience is a concept introduced in 3GPP Rel-19 to describe service scenarios where the user interaction and the information provided by a service are directly relevant to the physical location in which the user accesses the service. This definition, specified in 3GPP TS 22.156 and TS 22.856, captures the class of services that depend on or adapt to the user's location, such as augmented reality navigation, local search, proximity-based social networking, and location-aware advertising.

In a location related service experience, the service leverages knowledge of the user's physical location to deliver contextually relevant content or functionality. For example, a navigation application uses the user's current position to provide turn-by-turn directions; a restaurant recommendation service suggests nearby dining options; an AR game places virtual objects in the user's real-world environment. In all these cases, the service experience is fundamentally tied to where the user is, and the network must provide accurate, timely location information to enable the service.

The concept is important for 5G and future network design because it imposes specific requirements on the network, including high-accuracy positioning, low-latency location updates, and integration with edge computing. Location related services often benefit from multi-access edge computing (MEC) to reduce latency and ensure that location-specific content is served from a nearby edge node. They may also require network slicing to guarantee the necessary QoS for positioning and data delivery. The 3GPP specifications 22.156 and 22.856 define the requirements and use cases for these services, guiding how the 5G system should support them.

From an architectural perspective, location related service experience is one end of a spectrum, with location agnostic service experience at the other end. Most services fall somewhere in between, but the classification helps standardize how networks and applications handle location information. For location related services, the network must provide location services (LCS) with sufficient accuracy and reliability, often using advanced positioning methods such as NR positioning, sidelink positioning, or hybrid techniques. The location information may be consumed by the application itself (e.g., via APIs) or by network functions that adapt the service delivery based on location.

Privacy and security are critical considerations for location related services. Unlike location agnostic services, which do not require location data, location related services must handle sensitive location information, requiring robust privacy protections, user consent mechanisms, and secure data handling. 3GPP specifications address these aspects through privacy frameworks and security procedures, ensuring that location data is used only for authorized purposes and with appropriate safeguards. The concept also influences QoE measurement, as location related services may have different QoE metrics (e.g., positioning accuracy, update rate) compared to location agnostic ones.

Purpose & Motivation

The concept of location related service experience was introduced to provide a clear framework for classifying services that depend on the user's physical location. Before Rel-19, 3GPP specifications did not explicitly categorize services by their location dependency, even though many 5G use cases—such as AR/VR, autonomous driving, and smart city applications—are inherently location-aware. As networks evolved to support high-accuracy positioning and low-latency communication, it became necessary to define requirements and architectural support for services that rely on location information.

By defining location related service experience, 3GPP addresses the need for a common vocabulary that helps operators, service providers, and application developers understand when location information is essential and how the network should support it. This classification enables more efficient network design: for location related services, the network must provide accurate positioning, low-latency location updates, and often edge computing to meet service requirements. It also helps in privacy protection, as services that require location data must implement appropriate consent and security mechanisms.

The motivation also stems from the growing demand for location-based applications in 5G and beyond. Services like augmented reality navigation, local emergency alerts, and proximity-based marketing require precise, real-time location data. By distinguishing these from location agnostic services, 3GPP provides a foundation for optimizing network slicing, edge computing deployment, and QoE management. The specifications 22.156 and 22.856 capture these requirements, ensuring that the 5G system can flexibly support both types of service experiences while meeting the specific needs of location related services.