Difference between Point-to-Point and Multi-point Communication

Communication, in general, is the process of transferring data from a source to a destination by using any of the available modes such as audio, video, text or even signals, etc. This communication may be straightforward between one sender and one receiver or it may include multiple senders and receivers. On the basis of the number of senders and receivers involved, a communication can either be "Point-to-Point" or "Multi-point".

Read through this article to find out more about these two forms of communication and how they differ from each other.

What is Point-to-Point Communication?

In telecommunications, a point-to-point connection is a communications link between two communication endpoints or nodes. A telephone call is an example of this, in which two phones are linked, and what one caller says can only be heard by the other.

A "point-to-multipoint" or broadcast link, on the other hand, allows multiple nodes to receive information sent by a single node. Leased lines and microwave radio relays are also examples of point-to-point connections.

In a point-to-point communication, there will be a transmitter and a receiver connected together with a suitable connection. The capacity of the connecting channel remains unchanged throughout the communication.

What is Multi-point Communication?

In telecommunications, point-to-multipoint communication (P2MP, PTMP, or PMP) is a form of one-to-many communication that allows numerous routes to be established from a single site to several locations.

The usage of gigahertz radio frequencies for point-to-multipoint telecommunications is common in wireless Internet and IP telephony. P2MP systems have been created with and without a return channel from the numerous receivers. The system employs a kind of time-division multiplexing to enable the return channel traffic, which is transmitted from a central antenna to numerous receiving antennas.

Difference between Point-to-Point and Multi-point Communication

The following table highlights the important differences between Point-to-Point and Multi-point Communication.

Key	Point-to-Point Communication	Multi-point Communication
Definition	Point-to-point communication is a method in which the channel of communication is shared only between two devices or nodes.	Multi-point communication is a form of communication in which the channel is shared among multiple devices or nodes.
Load sharing	In case of Point-to-point communication, the channel is shared only between two nodes, so the load and capacity of the channel is available only to two nodes.	In case of Multi-point communication, the channel capacity is divided among multiple participant nodes.
Parties involved	In case of Point-to-point communication only two parties get involved, one as the Sender and the other as the Receiver.	In case of Multi-point communication, there could be multiple parties, however the role of parties could either be sender or receiver and some parties may behave like both.
Reliability	Point-to-point communication involves only two parties and the chances for information modulation is very less, hence this type of communication is more reliable as compared to Multi-point communication.	Due to the involvement of multiple parties, the chances for information modulation is more and hence Multi-point communication is comparatively less reliable as compared to Point-topoint communication.
Error Prone	Point-to-point communication is more error prone as compared to Multi-point communication.	Multi-point communication is less error prone as compared to Point-to-point communication.
Security and Privacy	Point-to-point communication is more secure and private as compared to Multi-point communication.	Multi-point communication is less secure and private as compared to Point-topoint communication.
Examples	Frame Relay, T-carrier, X.25	Frame Relay, Token Ring, Ethernet, ATM

Conclusion

The most important point that you should note here is that, in a point-to-point communication, there will be one transmitter and one receiver; whereas in a multi-point communication, there will be just one transmitter and many receivers.