Disclosed is a mobility management routing (MMR) node that performs
location management signaling operations associated with mobile
subscribers. The MMR node may also perform the signaling message routing
functionality typically provided by a network routing node, such as a
signaling system 7 (SS7) signal transfer point (STP) or an
SS7-over-Internet protocol signaling gateway (SG). The MMR node caches
mobile subscriber information extracted from messages transmitted between
an HLR and a VLR and responds to some of the messages using the cached
information. As a result, signaling message traffic and call setup time
in a mobile communications network are reduced.