Location Area Identity
Encyclopedia
Each location area of a public land mobile network
Public land mobile network
A public land mobile network is a regulatory term in telecommunications. A PLMN is a network that is established and operated by an administration or by a recognized operating agency for the specific purpose of providing land mobile telecommunications services to the public.A PLMN is identified...

 (PLMN) has its own unique identifier which is known as Location Area Identity (LAI). This internationally unique identifier is used for location updating of mobile subscribers. It is composed of a three decimal digit Mobile Country Code (MCC), a two to three digit Mobile Network Code
Mobile Network Code
A Mobile Network Code is used in combination with a Mobile Country Code to uniquely identify a mobile phone operator/carrier using the GSM/LTE, CDMA, iDEN, TETRA and UMTS public land mobile networks and some satellite mobile networks...

 (MNC) that identifies the GSM PLMN in that country, and a Location Area Code (LAC) which is a 16 bit number thereby allowing 65536 location areas within one GSM PLMN.

The LAI is broadcast regularly by Broadcast Control Channel
Broadcast Control Channel
The broadcast control channel is a point to multipoint, unidirectional channel used in the Um Interface of the GSM cellular standard....

 (BCCH). Mobile Station
Mobile Station
The mobile station comprises all user equipment and software needed for communication with a mobile network.The mobile station refers to global system connected to the mobile network, i.e. mobile phone or mobile computer connected using a mobile broadband adapter. This is the terminology of 2G...

 recognizes LAI and stores it in Subscriber Identity Module
Subscriber Identity Module
A subscriber identity module or subscriber identification module is an integrated circuit that securely stores the International Mobile Subscriber Identity and the related key used to identify and authenticate subscriber on mobile telephony devices .A SIM is held on a removable SIM card, which...

(SIM). Change of Location Area gives rise to location update request.
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