Managing multicast and broadcast services

1 . A method in a base station, the method comprising:

configuring, by the base station, an initial bandwidth part (BWP) within a bandwidth of a cell for communicating unicast information between the base station ( 104 ) and a user equipment (UE) via the initial BWP;

configuring, by the base station, a multicast and broadcast services (MBS) BWP to have a width that is larger than or same as a width of the initial BWP, the MBS BWP dedicated to conveying MBS information between the base station and the UE, and the MBS BWP including a first MBS BWP and a second MBS BWP; and

transmitting, by the base station and in the cell, an indication of the initial BWP and an indication of the MBS BWP, to provide the UE with access to the initial BWP and the MBS BWP, including transmitting MBS control information on a downlink (DL) component of the first MBS BWP and transmitting MBS data on a DL component of the second MBS BWP.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising transmitting the unicast information on a DL component of the initial BWP.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein configuring each of the initial BWP and the MBS BWP includes configuring a respective uplink (UL) BWP and a respective downlink (DL) BWP.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the base station is a distributed base station comprising a distributed unit (DU) and a central unit (CU).

5 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising:

transmitting, from the CU to the DU, an interface message indicating that the DU is to configure the MBS BWP.

6 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising:

receiving, at the DU and from the CU, a second interface message;

in response to receiving the second interface message, updating, by the DU, a configuration of the MBS BWP; and

transmitting, by the DU and to the UE, the updated configuration of the MBS BWP.

7 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising:

receiving, by the DU and from the CU, a third interface message; and

in response to receiving the third interface message, suspending the transmitting of the MBS information.

8 . A base station comprising processing hardware and configured to implement the method of claim 1 .

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the transmitting, by the base station, of the indication of the initial BWP and an indication of the MBS BWP includes transmitting, by the base station, a System Information Block (SIB) in which the indication of the initial BWP and the indication of the MBS BWP are included.

10 . A method in a UE for accessing a radio access network (RAN) ( 105 ), the method comprising:

receiving, by the UE and from the RAN, an indication of an initial BWP and an indication of an MBS BWP, wherein the MBS BWP has a width that is larger than or same as a width of the initial BWP, and the MBS BWP includes a first MBS BWP and a second MBS BWP;

accessing, by the UE, the RAN via the initial BWP and the MBS BWP to communicate unicast information and MBS information with the RAN, respectively, including receiving MBS control information on a DL component of the first MBS BWP and receiving MBS data on a downlink (DL) component of the second MBS BWP.

11 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising receiving the unicast information on a DL component of the initial BWP.

12 . A UE comprising processing hardware and configured to implement the method of claim 10 .

13 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the receiving, by the UE, of the indication of the initial BWP and the indication of the MBS BWP includes receiving, by the UE, a System Information Block (SIB) in which the indication of the initial BWP and the indication of the MBS BWP are included.