WO2014080275A2

WO2014080275A2 - Method and apparatus for providing service via mobile communication network or wireless local area network

Info

Publication number: WO2014080275A2
Application number: PCT/IB2013/002722
Authority: WO
Inventors: Haibo Wen; Shuigen Yang; Fanxiang Bin; Gang Liu
Original assignee: Alcatel Lucent SAS
Current assignee: Alcatel Lucent SAS
Priority date: 2012-11-23
Filing date: 2013-11-06
Publication date: 2014-05-30
Anticipated expiration: 2015-05-23
Also published as: WO2014080275A3; CN103841561B; CN103841561A

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and apparatus for providing a service to a User Equipment (UE) via a mobile communication network or a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). At the mobile communication network side, second information about the WLAN is obtained, the second information including a Service Set Identifier (SSID) of the WLAN; and a second message including the second information is sent to the UE via the mobile communication network. At the WLAN side, the second message is not advertised to the UE. At the UE side, the second message is received via the mobile communication network; a WLAN interface of the UE is turned on in response to the second message; and the WLAN is accessed using the second information via the WLAN interface. With the inventive solution, the access point of the WLAN will not advertise the SSID any longer to thereby improve the security, and the UE can obtain the SSID without turning on the WLAN interface always to thereby lower power consumption and prolong the lifetime of a battery. For example, the inventive solution can be applicable to a scenario where the WLAN is trusted, for example, deployed by an operator of the mobile communication network.

Description

Method and Apparatus for Providing Service via Mobile Communication Network or Wireless Local Area

Network Field of the invention

The present disclosure relates to the field of interconnection of a mobile communication network and a wireless local area network, and particularly to a method and apparatus for providing a service via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network.

Background of the invention

Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs) have been increasingly widely applied, and Wi-Fi is a common WLAN technology. At present a large number of users possess Wi-Fi devices, and the Wi-Fi also has become a standard component for smart mobile phones used by an increasing number of users. Moreover operators of mobile communication networks consider the WLAN technologies and particularly the Wi-Fi technology as a good complementary solution to the mobile communication networks. The carrier Wi-Fi has become a hot topic in 3GPP. The carrier Wi-Fi refers to a Wi-Fi that is provided as a service to customers of a mobile carrier, owned and operated directly or indirectly by the carrier. For example the carrier Wi-Fi can also be deployed by the third party hotspot provider and authenticated by the mobile operator. In other words, the carrier Wi-Fi is a trusted WLAN.

Integration of the Wi-Fi into cells and particularly small cells has become a hot topic at present. As compared with macro cells, the small cells have a smaller coverage area and include but will not be limited to micro cells, pico cells, femto cells, etc. In fact, co-existence of both the technologies, a mobile communication network and a wireless local area network, in a single box at a site (for example, a base station of the mobile communication network and an access point, i.e., an access device of the wireless local area network are integrated in a single device) will ensure the use of the right technology at all locations and at all times, thereby providing a seamless mobile experience that is completely agnostic to the type of radio access technology in use. This can not only significantly increase the network capacity of an operator but also lead to an improved user experience.

There are two general approaches at present to integrate the Wi-Fi into a carrier network, where one is SaMOG and ANDSF from 3GPP, and the other is based on HotSpot2.0 from Wi-Fi Alliance. For both the approaches, the WLAN Access Point (AP) directly or indirectly deployed by the operator has to advertise a Service Set Identifier (SSID) of the WLAN, and a UE, e.g., a smart mobile phone, which wants to access the WLAN has to either always turn on its Wi-Fi interface or manually turn on the Wi-Fi interface so as to try to find the Wi-Fi signal and initiate an access procedure (e.g., authentication) once the Wi-Fi AP is found.

The inventors of the invention have identified at least the following technical problems in the foregoing two approaches:

First if the Wi-Fi interface of the user equipment, e.g., a smart mobile phone, is turned on all the time, then battery power of the user equipment will be consumed quickly. In order to lower consumption of battery power, the most straightforward way is to turn off the Wi-Fi interface when it is not in use and to let the user turn on the Wi-Fi interface manually only when the user approaches a Wi-Fi hotspot, but this is obviously inconvenient for the user.

Secondly the Wi-Fi terminal (i.e., the Wi-Fi user equipment) has to first join and, if necessary, authenticate a WLAN to determine whether the WLAN is legal or untrustable and will try other detected WLANs until it either has found a trusted WLAN or tried all of detected WLANs. This is obviously neither convenient nor efficient. Thirdly the access point of the carrier Wi-Fi announces the SSID thereof, but a malicious user may make use of the SSID to attack the WLAN.

Summary of the invention

In view of the foregoing technical problem, an object of the invention is to provide a solution of providing a service via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network so as to improve the security of the network and/or prolong the lifetime of the battery of a Wi-Fi user equipment.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the method including the steps of: CI. obtaining second information about the wireless local area network, the second information including a Service Set Identifier, SSID, of the wireless local area network; and C2. sending a second message to the user equipment via the mobile communication network, the second message including the second information.

Since the SSID of the wireless local area network is sent to the user equipment via the mobile communication network, an access point of the wireless local area network will not advertise the SSID any longer, that is, the access point will not advertise the SSID any longer, and this prevents effectively a malicious user from obtaining the SSID and thus alleviates the attack by the malicious user towards the wireless local area network to thereby improve the security of the network.

According to a particular embodiment, the second information further includes information for indicating an operating channel of the wireless local area network.

Since the user equipment can obtain the information about the operating channel of the wireless local area network from the received second message, the user equipment can directly know the operating channel used by the wireless local area network without trying any possible operating channel.

According to a particular embodiment, before the step C2, the method further includes the step of: B. determining whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network; and if the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network, then performing the step C2; and if the service is not to be provided by the wireless local area network, then deciding the service to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

Among various services provided to the user equipment, some services may only be provided via the mobile communication network but can not be provided via the wireless local area network. Thus with the determination above, the information about the wireless local area network will be sent to the user equipment only if the service needed by the user equipment can be provided via the wireless local area network to thereby avoid an unnecessary operation and/or signaling overhead so as to improve the efficiency of the system.

According to a particular embodiment, the step B includes: B l . obtaining third information, from a network element in a core network of the mobile communication network, for determining whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network; and B2. determining from the third information whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network. The network element in the core network includes an Access Network Discovery and Selection Function device, ANDSF, a Home Subscriber Server, HSS, and/or an Authentication, Authorization and Accounting server, AAA.

According to a particular embodiment, before the step B, the method further includes the step of: A. receiving a first message from the user equipment via the mobile communication network, the first message including first information for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with a wireless local area network interface; and if the first information indicates that the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface, then performing the step B, and if the first information indicates that the user equipment is not provided with the wireless local area network interface, then deciding the service to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

In this way, the subsequent step, of determining whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network, and if so, then sending the SSID of the wireless local area network to the user equipment via the mobile communication network, will be performed only if the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface to thereby avoid an unnecessary operation and/or signaling overhead so as to improve the efficiency of the system.

According to a particular embodiment, the method is performed by a Mobile Management Entity device (MME) in the mobile communication network. As such the user equipment can be provided with a uniform service request procedure. For example, when the user equipment initiates a service request to the operator network, a service PDN connection can be set up via a normal mobile access, or also the service PDN connection can be offloaded to the wireless local area network, e.g., a trusted wireless local area network.

According to a particular embodiment, the first message and the second message are a Packet Data Network (PDN) Connectivity Request message and is a Packet Data Network (PDN) Connectivity Reject message respectively.

As such both the first information and the second information can be transmitted in the existing signaling messages without introducing any extra signaling message to thereby save the signaling overhead.

According to a particular embodiment, the wireless local area network is trusted. The trusted wireless local area network includes a carrier Wi-Fi. Since the wireless local area network is trusted, the user equipment can access the wireless local area network to be served without any authentication procedure to thereby simplify the process of provision by the wireless local area network of the service to the user equipment.

According to a particular embodiment, a base station of the mobile communication network is co-sited with an access device of the wireless local area network, for example, they are integrated on the same device.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of receiving a service in a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the method including the steps of: b. receiving a second message including second information about the wireless local area network via the mobile communication network, the second information including a Service Set Identifier, SSID, of the wireless local area network; d. opening a wireless local area network interface of the user equipment in response to the second message; and e. accessing the wireless local area network using the second information via the wireless local area network interface.

Since the user equipment turns on automatically the wireless local area network interface upon reception of the second message from the mobile communication network, the user equipment will not turn on the wireless local area network interface all the time, and the user will not turn on manually the wireless local area network interface, thereby prolonging effectively the lifetime of a battery while ensuring a good experience of the user.

According to a particular embodiment, before the step b, the method further includes: a. sending a first message via the mobile communication network, the first message including first information for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface.

Additionally between the step b and the step d, the method further includes: c. determining whether the service is to be received via the wireless local area network; and if the service is to be received via the wireless local area network, then performing the step d. Thus such a chance is provided that the user himself or herself chooses whether to be provided with the service via the wireless local area network in place of the mobile communication network.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a first apparatus for providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the first apparatus including: a first obtaining unit configured to obtain second information about the wireless local area network, the second information including a Service Set Identifier, SSID, of the wireless local area network; and a first sending unit configured to send a second message to the user equipment via the mobile communication network, the second message including the second information.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the first apparatus can be located in a mobile management entity device in the mobile communication network.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a second apparatus for receiving a service in a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the apparatus including: a second receiving unit configured to receive a second message about the wireless local area network via the mobile communication network, the second message including second information about the wireless local area network; a third controlling unit configured to open a wireless local area network interface of the user equipment in response to the second message; and an accessing unit configured to access the wireless local area network using the second information via the wireless local area network interface.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, there is provided a system for providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the system including: a base station of the mobile communication network, configured to serve the user equipment; an access device of the wireless local area network; and the first apparatus above.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the base station is co-sited with the access device.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the base station is a small base station. For example, the base station can be a base station of a small cell, a base station of a pico cell, a base station of a femto cell, etc. In this case, the base station has a coverage area similar to that of the access device.

Brief description of drawings

Other features, objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent upon review of the following detailed description of non-limiting embodiments with reference to the drawings in which:

Fig.l illustrates a flow chart of a method of providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention;

Fig.2 illustrates a block diagram of a first apparatus for providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention;

Fig.3 illustrates a block diagram of a second apparatus for receiving a service in a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention;

Fig.4 illustrates a WCF information element carrying first information according to an embodiment of the invention;

Fig.5 illustrates a WLAN information element carrying second information according to an embodiment of the invention; and

Fig.6 illustrates a flow chart of a method of providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention.

Identical or similar reference numerals denote identical or similar step features or devices/modules throughout the drawings. Detailed description of embodiments

Fig.l illustrates a flow chart of a method of providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention. Fig.2 illustrates a block diagram of a first apparatus for providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention. Fig.3 illustrates a block diagram of a second apparatus for receiving a service in a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention;

Referring to Fig.2, the first apparatus 200 includes a first obtaining unit 210 and a first sending unit 220. In an embodiment, the first apparatus 200 can be located in a Mobile Management Entity device (MME) of the mobile communication network. Referring to Fig.3, the second apparatus 300 located in the user equipment includes a second receiving unit 310, a third controlling unit 320 and an accessing unit 330.

Referring to Fig.l, in the step SI 20, the first apparatus 120 obtains second information about the wireless local area network through the first obtaining unit 210, the second information including a Service Set Identifier (SSID) of the wireless local area network. In an embodiment of the invention, the second information can further include information for indicating an operating channel of the wireless local area network. The second information can be obtained in numerous ways. For example the second information can be obtained from a network administration system, the second information can be obtained from a core network of the mobile communication network, or the second information can be set directly in the first apparatus by an operator.

Next in the step S I 30, the first apparatus 120 sends a second message to the user equipment 110 through the first sending unit 220 via the mobile communication network, the second message including the obtained second information. Specifically the first apparatus 120 can send the second message to a base station of a cell where the user equipment 110 is located, and then the base station sends the second message to the user equipment 110. Correspondingly the second receiving unit 310 of the second apparatus in the user equipment 110 receives the second message from the second apparatus 120 via the mobile communication network.

Next in the step S 140, the user equipment 110 turns on a wireless local area network interface of the user equipment 110 through the third controlling unit 320 of the second apparatus in response to the received second message. Thereafter in the step S140, the user equipment 110 accesses the corresponding wireless local area network using the received second information about the wireless local area network through the accessing unit 330 of the second apparatus via the turned-on wireless local area network interface.

Optionally the second apparatus 300 further includes a second sending unit 340 (Fig.3). Referring to Fig.2, in the step S I 10 preceding the step S 120, the user equipment 110 sends a first message including first information to the first apparatus 120 through the second sending unit 340 of the second apparatus via the mobile communication network, the first information being used for indicating whether the user equipment 110 is provided with a wireless local area network interface.

Correspondingly the first apparatus 200 can further include a first receiving unit 230 and a second controlling unit 240, where the first receiving unit 230 is configured to receive the first message, and the second controlling unit 240 is configured to perform the following control: if the first information indicates that the user equipment is not provided with the wireless local area network interface, then the service is decided to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

Optionally the first apparatus 200 can further include a first determining unit 250 and a second controlling unit 260, where the first determining unit 250 is configured to determine whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network, and the first controlling unit 260 is configured to perform the following control: if the first determining unit 250 determines the service to be provided by the wireless local area network, then the first sending unit 220 is caused to send the second message; and if the first determining unit 250 determines the service not to be provided by the wireless local area network, then the service is decided to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the first determining unit 250 will make corresponding determination only if the first information in the first message received by the first receiving unit 230 indicates that the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface.

Additionally the first apparatus 200 can further include a second obtaining unit 270 configured to obtain third information from a network element in the core network of the mobile communication network, the third information being used for determining whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network. Thereafter the first determining unit 250 determines from the third information obtained by the second obtaining unit 270 whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network.

Since the user equipment 110 can obtain the SSID of the wireless local area network via the mobile communication network, it can obtain the SSID without any advertising of the access device of the wireless local area network. According to an embodiment of the invention, the access device of the wireless local area network does not advertise the SSID.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the access device of the wireless local area network can advertise a public SSID instead of an SSID of another private wireless local area network deployed thereon. As such the access device can support the user equipment which is only provided with the WLAN interface. For example the user equipment only provided with the WLAN interface makes use of the advertised public SSID to join a corresponding public wireless local area network for access authentication, and next the access device can send the SSID of the other private wireless local area network to the user equipment via the public wireless local area network upon successful access authentication.

The first message and the second message can be implemented in numerous ways. In the case that the first apparatus 200 is located in the Mobility Management Entity device (MME) of the mobile communication network, the first message and the second message can be, for example, a PDN Connectivity Request message and a PDN Connectivity Reject message.

According to an embodiment of the invention, a WLAN Capability Flag (WCF) Information Element (IE) is defined in the PDN Connectivity Request message to carry the first message.

Fig.4 illustrates a WCF information element carrying the first information according to an embodiment of the invention. The WCF information element can be a Type 1 information element. As illustrated in Fig.4, the length of the WCF information element is one byte including four bits which are an WCF Information Element Indication (IEI), one bit which is a WCF value and the remaining three bits which are reserved (for example, which are set to 0). The WCF value is used for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface. For example, the WCF value can be defined as follows: the WCF value being 0 indicates that the user equipment is not provided with the WLAN interface; and the WCF value being 1 indicates that the user equipment is provided with the WLAN interface.

According to an embodiment of the invention, a WLAN Info Information Element (IE) is defined in the PDN Connectivity Reject message to carry the second information.

Fig.5 illustrates a WLAN Info information element carrying the second information according to an embodiment of the invention. The WLAN Info information element can be a Type 4 information element and includes a WLAN Info information element indication field, a WLAN Info length field and a WLAN Info value field. As illustrated in Fig.5, the length of the WLAN Info information element is n bytes including a first byte which is the WLAN Info Information Element Indication (IEI) field, a second byte which is the WLAN Info length field, and a third to n-th bytes which are the WLAN Info value field. The WLAN Info value field includes the SSID of the WLAN. Additionally the WLAN Info value field can further include other information, for example, the information indicating the operating channel of the WLAN, etc.

The method of providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to the invention can be applicable in various scenarios. In an example, the method can be applicable to initially requesting for a service. In another example, the method can be applicable during a service, for example, the user equipment is handed over from a cell without a WLAN to a cell with a WLAN during the service. The application of the method to initially requesting for a service will be described below in details without loss of generality.

Fig.6 illustrates a flow chart of a method of providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network according to an embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the first apparatus is arranged in a Mobility Management Entity device (MME). As illustrated in Fig.6, the user equipment (UE) 710 is served by a small cell 720 with a Wi-Fi. The small cell 720 with the Wi-Fi refers to the small cell 720 integrated with the Wi-Fi, for example, a base station of the small cell 720 is co-sited with an Wi-Fi access point or integrated with the Wi-Fi access point in the same device. Fig.6 further illustrates the Mobility Management Entity device (MME) 730, a Packet Gateway (PGW) 740, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) Gateway (WLAN GW) 750, the Internet 760 and a network element770 of the core network, where the network element 770 of the core network can include an Access Network Discovery and Selection Function device (ANDSF), a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) and/or an Authentication, Authorization and Accounting server (AAA). As well known to those skilled in the art, the base station of the mobile communication network (e.g., the base station of the small cell 720) is communicatively connected with the core network of the mobile communication network; the respective network elements in the core network (including the mobility management entity device 730, the packet gateway 740 and the network element 770) can also communicate with each other; the Wi-Fi access point of the small cell 720 is communicatively connected with the wireless local area network gateway 750; and the core network and the wireless local area network gateway 750 are connected to the Internet 760.

Referring to Fig.6, in the step S710, the user equipment 710 sends a PDN Connectivity Request message to the mobility management entity device 730 via the base station of the small cell 720. The sent PDN Connectivity Request message includes a WCF information element for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with a wireless local area network interface. Additionally the PDN Connectivity Request message further includes an Access Point Name (APN) information element indicating the requested service.

In some examples, the user equipment 710 can always have the WCF information element included in the sent PDN Connectivity Request message. In some examples, the user equipment 710 can decide from the user setting whether to have the WCF information element included in the sent PDN Connectivity Request message. For example, when the user of the user equipment 710 does not want to have the wireless local area network interface turned on/off automatically in response to a message from the network, the user equipment 710 can be instructed by the corresponding user setting not to have the WCF information element included in the PDN Connectivity Request message.

In the step S730, the mobility management entity device 730 determines from the received PDN Connectivity Request message whether the requested service is to be offloaded to a trusted WLAN (the Wi-Fi integrated in the small cell 720 in this example). Specifically if the WCF information element indicates that the user equipment is not provided with the wireless local area network interface, then it is determined that the requested service can not be offloaded to the WLAN. In this example, the WCF information element is assumed to indicate that the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface. At this time it is further determined whether the service requested by the user equipment is to be provided by the WLAN.

Optionally the mobility management entity device 730 can obtain relevant information from the network element 770 of the core network to determine whether the service requested by the user equipment is to be provided by the WLAN (the step S720). For example the mobility management entity device 730 can obtain from the ANDSF the information indicating whether the small cell 720 is integrated with the WLAN. For example the mobility management entity device 730 can obtain from the HSS the information indicating whether the user equipment 710 has requested for the service to be provided by the WLAN.

If the determination result of the step S730 is to have the requested service offloaded to the WLAN (the case 1 in Fig.6), then the steps S741 to S747 are performed particularly as follows.

In the step 741 , the mobility management entity device 730 sends a PDN Connectivity Reject message including a WLAN Info information element to the user equipment 710 via the base station of the small cell 720. The WLAN Info information element carries information about the WLAN to which the requested service is to be offloaded (the Wi-Fi in the small cell 720 in this example), the information including the SSID of the WLAN and optionally information indicating an operating channel of the WLAN.

In the step 743, the user equipment 710 detects the WLAN Info information element included in the received PDN Connectivity Reject message and thus turns on automatically the WLAN interface. Optionally the user equipment 710 may not turn on the WLAN interface immediately upon detection of the WLAN Info information element. For example the user equipment 710 can inquire the user about whether to be provided with the requested service via the wireless local area network, and if so, then it turns on the WLAN interface.

In the step 745, a connection is set up for the requested service between the user equipment 710 and the WLAN gateway 750 via the wireless local area network in the small cell 720 (particularly the WLAN access device in the small cell 720).

Next in the step 747, the user equipment 710 is provided with the requested service via the wireless local area network in the small cell 720 (particularly the WLAN access device in the small cell 720 and the WLAN gateway 750).

If the determination result of the step S730 is that the requested service can only be provided via the mobile communication network (the case 2 in Fig.6), then the steps S751 to S753 are performed particularly as follows.

In the step S751, the mobility management entity device 730 sends an Activate Default EPS Bearer Context Request message to the user equipment 710 via the base station of the small cell 720.

Next in the step S752, the user equipment 710 is provided with the requested service via the mobile communication network (particularly the base station of the small cell 720 and the package data gateway 740).

As described above, the user equipment 710 can turn on automatically the wireless local area network interface in response to a message from the mobile communication network (the PDN Connectivity Reject message in this example). Additionally the method can further include the step of turning off automatically the wireless local area network interface of the user equipment 710. According to a particular embodiment of the invention, the user equipment 710 can turn off automatically the wireless local area network interface when one of the following conditions is satisfied:

(1) The user of the user equipment 710 disables the requested service; and

(2) The user equipment 710 is handed over to the mobile communication network because, for example, the WLAN is disabled, the user equipment leaves the coverage area of the WLAN, etc., so that the mobile communication network further provides the user equipment with the requested service.

Those skilled in the art shall appreciate that all of the foregoing embodiments are merely illustrative but not limiting. Different technical features appearing in different embodiments can be combined to advantage. Those skilled in the art shall appreciate and make other variant embodiments to the disclosed embodiments upon review of the drawings, the description and the claims. In the claims, the term "comprising" will not preclude another device(s) or step(s); the definite article "a" or "an" will not preclude plural; and the terms "first", "second", etc., are merely intended to designate a name but not to suggest any specific order. Any reference numerals in the claims shall not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. The mere fact that some technical features appear in different dependent claims will not mean that these technical features can not be combined to advantage.

Claims

1. A method of providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the method comprising the steps of:

CI . obtaining second information about the wireless local area network, the second information including a Service Set Identifier, SSID, of the wireless local area network; and

C2. sending a second message to the user equipment via the mobile communication network, the second message including the second information.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second information further includes information for indicating an operating channel of the wireless local area network.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein before the step C2, the method further comprises the step of:

B. determining whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network; and

if the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network, then performing the step C2; and

if the service is not to be provided by the wireless local area network, then deciding the service to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the step B comprises:

B l . obtaining third information, from a network element in a core network of the mobile communication network, for determining whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network; and

B2. determining from the third information whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the network element in the core network includes an Access Network Discovery and Selection Function device, ANDSF, a Home Subscriber Server, HSS, and/or an Authentication, Authorization and Accounting server, AAA.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein before the step C2, the method further comprises the step of:

A. receiving a first message from the user equipment via the mobile communication network, the first message including first information for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with a wireless local area network interface; and

if the first information indicates that the user equipment is not provided with the wireless local area network interface, then deciding the service to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the method is performed by a mobile management entity device in the mobile communication network.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein ,

the first message is a packet data network Connectivity Request message; and

the second message is a packet data network Connectivity Reject message.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the wireless local area network is trusted.

10. A method of receiving a service in a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the method comprising the steps of:

b. receiving a second message including second information about the wireless local area network via the mobile communication network, the second information including a Service Set Identifier, SSID, of the wireless local area network;

d. opening a wireless local area network interface of the user equipment in response to the second message; and

e. accessing the wireless local area network using the second information via the wireless local area network interface.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein before the step b, the method further comprises:

a. sending a first message via the mobile communication network, the first message including first information for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface.

12. A first apparatus for providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the first apparatus comprising:

a first obtaining unit configured to obtain second information about the wireless local area network, the second information including a Service Set Identifier, SSID, of the wireless local area network; and

a first sending unit configured to send a second message to the user equipment via the mobile communication network, the second message including the second information.

13. The first apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the second information further includes information for indicating an operating channel of the wireless local area network.

14. The first apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the first apparatus further comprises:

a first determining unit configured to determine whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network; and

a first controlling unit configured, if the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network, to cause the first sending unit to send the second message, and if the service is not to be provided by the wireless local area network, to decide the service to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

15. The first apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the first apparatus further comprises:

a second obtaining unit configured to obtain third information, from a network element in a core network of the mobile communication network, for determining whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network; and

the first determining unit is further configured to determine from the third information whether the service is to be provided by the wireless local area network.

16. The first apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the network element in the core network includes an Access Network Discovery and Selection Function device, ANDSF, a Home Subscriber Server, HSS, and/or an Authentication, Authorization and Accounting server, AAA.

17. The first apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the first apparatus further comprises

a first receiving unit configured to receive a first message from the user equipment via the mobile communication network, the first message including first information for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with a wireless local area network interface; and

a second controlling unit configured, if the first information indicates that the user equipment is not provided with the wireless local area network interface, to decide the service to be provided to the user equipment via the mobile communication network.

18. The first apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the first apparatus is arranged in a mobile management entity device in the mobile communication network.

19. The first apparatus according to claim 18, wherein,:

the first message is a packet data network Connectivity Request message; and

the second message is a packet data network Connectivity Reject message.

20. The first apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the wireless local area network is trusted.

21. A second apparatus for receiving a service in a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the apparatus comprising: a second receiving unit configured to receive a second message about the wireless local area network via the mobile communication network, the second message including second information about the wireless local area network;

a third controlling unit configured to open a wireless local area network interface of the user equipment in response to the second message; and

an accessing unit configured to access the wireless local area network using the second information via the wireless local area network interface.

22. The second apparatus according to claim 21 , wherein the second apparatus further comprises:

a sending unit configured to send a first message via the mobile communication network, the first message including first information for indicating whether the user equipment is provided with the wireless local area network interface.

23. A system for providing a service to a user equipment via a mobile communication network or a wireless local area network, the system comprising:

a base station of the mobile communication network, configured to serve the user equipment;

an access device of the wireless local area network; and

the first apparatus according to claim 12.

24. The system according to claim 23, wherein the base station is co-sited with the access device.

25. The system according to claim 23, wherein the base station is a small base station.