Which traffic type supports sending packets from one source to a specific group of receivers?

Multicast is the correct answer because it is specifically designed to send packets from a single source to a designated group of receivers. This traffic type efficiently manages bandwidth and reduces unnecessary load on the network by allowing multiple receivers to listen to the same data stream without requiring separate transmissions for each one. In multicast, packets are not sent to every device on the network, but only to those that have indicated they wish to receive the specific group data, using multicast addresses, which are in a defined IP range (224.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255).

In contrast, unicast involves one-to-one communication where data is sent from one source to one specific destination, which is not efficient for sending data to multiple receivers. Broadcast sends data packets to all devices on a network segment, which can lead to congestive traffic and is not suitable for targeted communications. Anycast, meanwhile, allows a packet to be routed to the nearest member of a group of potential receivers, also not focused on sending to a specific group of receivers, but rather to the closest one in the context of routing. Thus, multicast is unique in its ability to effectively target a specific group of receivers.