Communications methods, apparatus and systems for providing efficient and scalable media services

A communications method comprising:

• receiving, by a packet plane control service entity, a request from a Signaling-Session Border Controller (S-SBC) to implement one or more micro-services on a media packet stream, said request including information about the media packet stream, said information about the media packet stream including media packet stream identification information, said one or more micro-services including a first micro-service, said packet plane control service entity controlling one or more Software Defined Networking (SDN) controllers and a first programmable device not being controlled by a SDN controller;
• determining, by the packet plane control service entity, whether the first micro-service can be implemented by one or more programmable switches being controlled by the one or more SDN controllers;
• and
• in response to determining that the first micro-service can not be implemented by one or more programmable switches being controlled by the one or more SDN controllers, determining, by the packet plane control service entity, whether the first micro-service can be implemented by the first programmable device.

A communications system comprising:

• a Signaling-Session Border Controller (S-SBC);
• and
• a packet plane control service entity including:
• memory;
• and
• a processor, said processor controlling the packet plane control service entity to perform the following operations:
• receiving, by the packet plane control service entity, a request from the S-SBC to implement one or more micro-services on a media packet stream, said request including information about the media packet stream, said information about the media packet stream including media packet stream identification information, said one or more micro-services including a first micro-service, said packet plane control service entity controlling one or more Software Defined Networking (SDN) controllers and a first programmable device not being controlled by a SDN controller;
• determining, by the packet plane control service entity, whether the first micro-service can be implemented by one or more programmable switches being controlled by the one or more SDN controllers;
• and
• in response to determining that the first micro-service can not be implemented by one or more programmable switches being controlled by the one or more SDN controllers, determining, by the packet plane control service entity, whether the first micro-service can be implemented by the first programmable device.