Summary

This Recommendation describes terminals, equipment, and services for multimedia communication over packet-based networks. H.332 terminals and equipment may carry real-time voice, data, and video in any combination. The goal is to work within the framework of Recommendation H.323, yet provide scalability well beyond the limits of Recommendation H.323 to enable applications involving hundreds and thousands of participants.

H.332 terminals may be integrated into personal computers or implemented in stand-alone devices such as videotelephones. Support for voice is mandatory, while data and video are optional, but if supported, the ability to use a specified common mode of operation is required, so that all terminals supporting that media type can interwork. Like Recommendation H.323, this Recommendation allows more than one channel of each type to be in use. Other Recommendations in the H.332 series include H.323 visualtelephone equipment forLocalAreaNetworks, H.225.0 packet and synchronization, H.245 control, H.261 and H.263 video codecs, G.711, G.722, G.728, G.729, and G.723.1 audio codecs, and the T.120 series of multimedia communications protocols.

H.332 terminals are based on Recommendation H.323; therefore, they interwork via gateways with H.310 terminals on B-ISDN, H.320 terminals on N-ISDN, H.321 terminals on B-ISDN, H.322 terminals on Guaranteed Quality of Service LANs, H.324 terminals on GSTN and wireless networks, and V.70 terminals on GSTN.