The Next Generation Internet will be built on the highly flexible and scalable infrastructure of the current Internet by providing added scope for differentiated quality of service, reliability and availability guarantees. The success of this evolution to a converged network, supporting existing voice, video and data services while remaining open to the development of future applications, depends largely on the ability of handling smartly and effectively network resources. Crucial requirements for such converged multi-service networks are flexibility, effective utilization of network resources, and ability to promptly react to traffic demand changes with time. Traffic engineering (TE) aims at fulfilling these requirements, allowing the network to cope with the need of promptly reacting to traffic demand changes, in an effective way, while taking into account the different requirements in terms of QoS.

In the technical/scientific literature specific functions such as routing, grooming of data, wavelength routing and wavelength assignment in the optical layer, priority handling and pre-emption strategies, and related algorithms, are usually treated individually, and addressing these issues in a "single-layer" approach rather than a "multi-layer" approach. The promising Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching (GMPLS) paradigm allows multi-layer control and management, since the current link and node status is made available through its set of routing and signaling protocols (e.g., OSPF-TE and RSVP-TE), and each node of the network is visible by the control independently of the used technology.

The objective of this issue is to solicit original work regarding TE in multi-layer networks. Of particular interest are "integrated solutions", addressing more than one of the previously mentioned topics, which can be favorably implemented in real systems.

Researchers will be invited to submit original work on topics within this scope, including the following:

• Routing in multi-layer networks
• Protection and restoration strategies and algorithms applied to multi-layer networks
• Priority handling and pre-emption mechanisms
• Bandwidth management systems
• Integrated traffic engineering solutions
• Traffic management
• Packet-aware networks
• Multi-layer network design and related tools
• Numerical methods and simulation
• Platforms and testbeds for traffic engineering

Authors should follow the IEEE J-SAC manuscript format described in the Information for Authors. Prospective authors should submit a pdf version of their complete manuscript via email to one of the Guest Editors according to the following timetable: