Broadband Wireless Payload: Packet-Switched Data

5G networks communicate via the Internet. The Internet communicates with the aid of a suite of software network protocols called Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) or User Datagram Protocol/Internet Protocol (UDP/IP). These protocols work together with an additional pair of protocols, namely the data link protocol and the physical layer protocol, the latter two being referred to collectively as the Network Access protocol. This chapter reviews TCP, UDP, IP, and the relevant Network Access protocols, and since voice- and video-generated data are some of the more commonly transported via the Internet to and from 5G networks, how this data is generated is also reviewed.