ENABLING A PACKET-BASED COMMUNICATION CLIENT AS A MOBILE TERMINAL

The present invention provides a service node to facilitate the integration of cellular and packet networks. In particular, the service node acts as a proxy for packet-based communications over a packet network for a packet communication client, and also emulates a call routing entity associated with a cellular network. In select embodiments, the call routing entity emulated by the service node may be a visited mobile switching center, home mobile switching center, or a home location register. In operation, calls being processed in the cellular network may be processed in part by the service node, which is emulating a particular call routing entity. For calls involving the cellular network that are ultimately terminated on the packet network, the service node supports efficient call processing or handling, depending on the call routing entity being emulated.