For some time, SC 6 and ITU-T SG 7 have been developing specifications for multi-party communications in what would traditionally be labelled the Transport layer -- that is, above the Network layer, and of a general nature to support a range of different kinds of application. The two major features of the work that go beyond traditional Transport protocols are multicast operation, and the provision of means to express, negotiate and maintain the quality of service of communication in a multi-party environment. The multicast provision considered is biased towards relatively small groups of communicating participants. In the current and near-term marketplace, we would also expect deployment and use of such protocols to be biased towards the intranet environment, more than the global Internet; in the longer term, that bias might very well change. In parallel with development of the protocol specifications, there have been two implementation projects (in Germany and Korea) that are now able to demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach that has been adopted. Early work, now completed, on ECTS (Enhanced Communications Transport Service) has been used to focus and direct the protocol development. We have tried to identify, and so avoid re-inventing, existing protocols which could meet some of the needs (eg RTP); and conversely, to identify gaps where new protocols need to be developed. Related work has identified the requirement for associated, ancillary, protocols -- possibly generic, possibly related to particular kinds of application area -- and some experimental work in these areas has been carried out. The resulting protocol development work -- labelled ECTP -- deals with two main areas: firstly, a set of protocol functions that provide a framework for control of multicast conversations, including negotiation of a wide range of possible quality of service values, and consequent selection of suitable bearer protocols at or just above the Network layer for the actual data transfer; and secondly, development of a specific multicast bearer protocol offering a range of reliability options. The BOF is envisaged as the first of a possible two-stage introduction of this SG 7 and SC 6 work to the wider development arena of the IETF. We hope and expect to stimulate wider interest and participation in further developing some strands of the technical work, including some that would take advantage of IETF work such as RTP. To facilitate this we intend to set up a dedicated e-mail exploder (ie separate from the existing sc6wg7 exploder, which will continue to be used for other WG 7 business). According to the results of such activity, we would hope to generate a further BOF session at a subsequent IETF meeting, with a view to pursuing well identified work items in a suitably chartered new Working Group. Other outcomes are recognised as being possible. There may not be enough interest; there may be interest, but in development areas that turn out to fit in existing Working Groups. (For example, some of the work that has been contributed on associated protocols, for information and context, clearly belongs within the intended (future) scope of MMUSIC, and would be pursued in that forum at the appropriate time.)