Methods for managing a pool of multicast addresses and allocating addresses in a communications system

In a communications system having a plurality of endpoints each comprising a logical entity and its physical counterpart, a method for allocating at least one multicast address for media exchange from a pool of multicast addresses, comprising the steps of:

• detecting from information included in a first message a request for at least one multicast address for media exchange during at least one session;
• detecting from said information each type of media to be sourced during said at least one said session;
• allocating at least one multicast address for media exchange from a pool of multicast addresses as a function of said step of detecting each type of media that will be sourced during said at least one session.

In a communications system having a plurality of endpoints each comprising a logical entity and its physical counterpart, a method for allocating at least one multicast address for media exchange from a pool of multicast addresses, the method comprising the steps of:

• detecting from information included in a Session Description Protocol (SDP) packet included in first message a request for at least one multicast address for media exchange during at least one session;
• detecting from said SDP packet each type of media to be sourced during said at least one said session;
• allocating said at least one multicast address for media exchange from a pool of multicast addresses as a function of said step of detecting each type of media that will be sourced during said at least one session.