Systems and methods for dynamically switching between unicast and multicast delivery of media content in a wireless network

A system comprising:

• a memory storing instructions;
• and
• a processor communicatively coupled to the memory and configured to execute the instructions to:
• access, by way of a wireless network, a multicast stream carrying multicast stream content representative of a media content program;
• detect, during the accessing of the multicast stream, an instruction, which is provided within the multicast stream, to switch to a unicast stream carrying unicast stream content representative of the media content program;
• send a request to a media subsystem to access the unicast stream carrying the unicast stream content representative of the media content program, the request including access information for the multicast stream as a parameter that is used to identify the unicast stream, the access information for the multicast stream including a network address where the multicast stream is accessible;
• receive, from the media subsystem, access information for the unicast stream that maps to the access information for the multicast stream based on a switch map generated by the media subsystem, the access information for the unicast stream including a network address where the unicast stream is accessible, and the switch map mapping the network address where the multicast stream is accessible to the network address where the unicast stream is accessible;
• receive, from the media subsystem, a buffering instruction that is provided within the multicast stream and that includes an instruction to buffer at least one of the multicast stream and the unicast stream to facilitate a seamless switch from the multicast stream to the unicast stream;
• switch, based on the access information for the unicast stream, from the accessing of the multicast stream to accessing the unicast stream by way of the wireless network;
• temporally align the unicast stream content and the multicast stream content across the switching from the accessing of the multicast stream to the accessing of the unicast stream;
• detect, during the accessing of the unicast stream, an additional instruction to switch to a new multicast stream carrying new multicast stream content representative of the media content program;
• switch, in response to the additional instruction, from the accessing of the unicast stream to accessing the new multicast stream by way of the wireless network;
• and
• temporally align the unicast stream content and the new multicast stream content across the switching from the accessing of the unicast stream to the accessing of the new multicast stream;
• and
• present the media content program for experiencing by a user, wherein the presenting of the media content program comprises:
• processing the temporally aligned unicast stream content and multicast stream content based on the buffering instruction to effectuate a seamless presentation of the media content program across the switching from the accessing of the multicast stream to the accessing of the unicast stream;
• and
• processing the temporally aligned unicast stream content and new multicast stream content to effectuate a seamless presentation of the media content program across the switching from the accessing of the unicast stream to the accessing of the new multicast stream.