Method and System for Improving Performance of Broadcast/Multicast Transmissions

A method comprising:

• receiving, by a client node, a subpacket in a series of subpackets, wherein the subpacket is broadcast or multicast to the client node on a bearer channel by an access node, wherein the subpacket was derived from a full packet;
• determining that the full packet cannot be decoded from the subpacket;
• transmitting, to the access node, a first negative acknowledgement on a first sub-channel of a plurality of sub-channels of a feedback channel;
• after transmitting the first negative acknowledgement, determining that the client node has not received a subsequent subpacket in the series of subpackets;
• transmitting, to the access node, a second negative acknowledgement on a second sub-channel of the plurality of sub-channels of the feedback channel .

An access node comprising:

• a processor;
• data storage;
• program instructions, stored in the data storage, that when executed by the processor cause the access node to perform operations comprising:
• transmitting a subpacket in a series of subpackets to a plurality of client nodes, wherein the subpacket is broadcast or multicast to the client nodes on a bearer channel;
• receiving feedback signals from more than a threshold number of the plurality of client nodes, wherein the feedback signals negatively acknowledge the subpacket;
• and
• in response to receiving the feedback signals from more than the threshold number of the plurality of client nodes, transmitting a subsequent subpacket in the series of subpackets, wherein the subsequent subpacket is broadcast or multicast on the bearer channel.