# Summary of S4-260057: Ways of Working for FS_6G_MED

## Introduction and Background

This document proposes ways of working for the Feasibility Study on "Media Aspects for 6G System" (FS_6G_MED), which was agreed at SA4#134 (S4-252142) and approved by SA plenary #110 (SP-251652). The study aims to deliver TR 26.870 by TSG SA#115 (Mar-27), with an information milestone at TSG SA#114 (Dec-26).

The study encompasses five work topics:
- WT#1: Media Delivery Architecture
- WT#2: 6G Media
- WT#3: Media Aspects related to SA2 topics
- WT#4: Media for ubiquitous access
- WT#5: Trusted and private media communication

## Basic Assumptions

The document establishes several foundational principles:

- **Monitoring Other WGs**: Track work and timelines in other working groups to identify impacts on SA4-defined services
- **6G Media is 5G Media Unless Agreed Differently**: Improvements, new features, or changes to 5G media require motivation (e.g., new service requirements, gap analysis, optimization potentials). This ensures no disruption to existing services while enabling improvements for 6G
- **Reuse of Other 5G Media Studies**: Collaboration with ongoing or completed 5G media studies and relevant organizations is encouraged
- **Work Topic Prioritization**: Not all work topics have equal priority. Prioritization based on requests from other WGs, dependencies, service requirements, expected load, and company support

## Work Towards SA4 Terms of Reference and DNA

The study should align with SA4's Terms of Reference (SP-241362) and create value within 3GPP and the broader ecosystem. Key objectives include:

- Addressing market needs, deployment feasibility, sustainability, innovation platform, monetization opportunities, cost-consciousness
- Timeliness in execution
- Developing specifications against meaningful KPIs for media services
- Implementability (test, evaluation, code, reference software)
- Collaboration with industry partners and other SDOs (IETF, MPEG, Khronos)
- Developer-friendly outputs (APIs, code, examples, git-environments)

## Organization of Work

The document proposes a flexible organizational approach:

- **Initial Phase**: Start by collecting input and documenting proposals opportunistically, allowing for both holistic and key-issue-based documentation
- **Rapid Response Capability**: Structure work to enable quick prioritization if SA plenary or other WGs require rapid progress (e.g., for AI traffic)
- **Two Main Approaches**:
  - **Key Issues**: Identify concrete open issues or optimization potential with candidate solutions (suitable for WT1 and WT3)
  - **Larger-scoped Work Topics**: Address broad scope as sub-studies within the overall 6G media study (suitable for WT4, WT5, and potentially WT2)
- **Documentation**: Each work topic may use a dedicated Annex in TR 26.870 to collect agreements
- **Early TR Development**: Initiate TR with sections on assumptions, requirements, existing media services, and industry trends

## TR 26.870 Structure and Rationale

The proposed TR structure includes:

- Introduction and scope
- Clauses addressing assumptions, use cases and requirements (from SA1), and existing media services
- Sections for industry trends and references to other studies
- Main body divided into work topics (clustered by key issues or objectives)
- Clause for consolidated findings and recommendations
- Annexes for specific work topics if needed

The rationale emphasizes:
- Opportunistic and flexible approach
- Acceptance of slide decks and workshop-style contributions
- Accommodation of both flat organization (key issues) and detailed, objective-driven sections
- Serving as a baseline for future work, not a gating factor
- Prioritization and flexibility, especially for topics with external pressure

## Main Work Topics and Initial Priorities

### Work Topic 1: Media Delivery Architecture
**Priority**: Low to Medium
- Initial work based on new needs or SA2 aspects not yet studied
- Monitoring existing or new dependencies on SA2
- Some work in 5G Advanced addresses enhancements (FS_AMD_Ph2)

### Work Topic 2: 6G Media
**Priority**: Highest
- Highest complexity and breadth
- Includes traffic characteristics, QoE, and other aspects
- Requires significant focus and input to define scope and approach

### Work Topic 3: Media Aspects Related to SA2 Topics
**Priority**: Minimal unless clear dependency identified
- Monitor progress in SA2
- Key issues to monitor in TR 23.801-01:
  - Key Issue #20: Integrated Sensing and Communication (collection and transport of sensing data)
  - Key Issue #21: 6G data framework (data storage, retrieval, quality, latency, volume)
  - Key Issue #22: 6G Computing Support

### Work Topic 4: Media for Ubiquitous Access
**Priority**: Treated as near-separate study
- Leverage ULBC work
- Focus on data rates, scheduling, and implications for media services over NTN (GEO and LEO)

### Work Topic 5: Trusted and Private Media Communication
**Priority**: Medium
- Requires definition of key questions and scoping
- May evolve as separate study
- Contribution-driven priority
- Should be driven by use cases

## Handling AI Traffic Characteristics

AI traffic characteristics are identified as requiring **higher priority**:

- **Accelerated Action Required**: Due to interest from SA plenary and other WGs; SA4 expected to take the lead for media-related aspects
- **Coordination Essential**: Active coordination with SA1 (requirements) and SA2 (architecture)
- **Deliverable**: Define "AI formats" (tokens, embeddings, latents, compressed representations) and develop framework for AI traffic characteristics
  - First version ready for SA plenary reporting within a few months
  - Requires commitment from multiple contributors
- **Sharing Results**: Results and frameworks should be shared with other WGs and SA plenary for generalization/adaptation
- **Network Independence**: Traffic characteristics should be developed independent of access network to identify opportunities for future networks
- **Realistic Applications**: Analysis should cover:
  - Generative AI services (LLMs, image/video generation)
  - Agentic AI patterns (multi-step tool calling, tool server workflows)
  - Different AI applications, formats, AI codecs, and protocols
  - QoE/User Experience under emulated network conditions (latency, loss, bandwidth)
  - Measurements of existing applications under various network conditions
  - Subjective and objective quality measures (SA4 core strength and differentiator)
- **Input Welcome**: Inputs for AI Traffic Characteristics as part of WT2 are welcome to SA4#135

## Larger Themes

To market SA4 and 3GPP work for 6G, larger themes and KPIs should be identified. Example themes include:

- User Experience-based services and applications
- Networking AI-media services for improved experiences
- Trusted media services and applications
- Developer and implementer-friendly specifications

Input for new or larger themes is welcomed.

## Proposals

The document proposes to:

1. Agree on basic assumptions in clause 2 and document in TR 26.870
2. Use SA4 TOR as guidance for FS_6G_MED study work
3. Agree on organization of work based on clause 4 (covered by work plan in S4aP26002)
4. Agree on TR 26.870 skeleton based on rationales in clause 5 (separate contribution S4aP26004)
5. Agree on main work topics and priorities provided in clause 6
6. Agree on handling of AI traffic characteristics based on clause 7
7. Invite contributions on larger themes for 6G, using clause 8 as starting point