3g Wireless Demystified
Authors: Lawrence J. Harte, Richard Levine, Roman Kikta
Venue:  (2001)

From the Book:Foreword At the beginning of 2001, almost 1 person in 7 worldwide had a wireless phone. To connect people and improve the overall quality of life, new third generation wireless systems have been developed that offer new multimedia capabilities, better reliability, improved battery life, and efficient and more cost-effective solutions. Since the first second generation mobile telephones were introduced into the marketplace in 1991, the demand for digital mobile telephones and service continues to grow at over 40% per year. At the end of 2000, there were more than 680 million mobile subscribers throughout the world. Third generation systems will rapidly replace second generation systems as second generation digital mobile telephone systems have rapidly replaced first generation analog systems. Third generation (3G) wireless systems are an evolution of second generation wireless technologies, and they will use much of the existing second generation infrastructure and radio systems. 3G systems will become the leading communication technology because they provide more cost effective solutions and new broadband multimedia services. In comparison to second generation systems, 3G systems available in 2001 allow for a 70%o increase in network capacity while reducing the cell sites needed by over 30%. The main issues for both users and operators will be capacity and security. Revenue from radio airtime usage is declining. To increase the value of a customer to a wireless operator, new services can be offered that will increase airtime usage, and content delivery and advertising revenues will supplement basic service revenues. Creative mobile operators offer thousands of services through Internet hypermarketing that will prompt greater wireless usage. Third generation systems were designed for secure, efficient interconnection with the Internet. By designing the network to take advantage of Internet Protocol (IP), third generation networks provide cost savings for system operators and end users. Third generation systems are less complex networks with fewer nodes, with a single core network that allows standard Internet-based software applications such as email and web browsing. The twenty-first century will see new lifestyles that are enabled by the advanced capabilities of digital wireless communication. Third generation systems offer the potential for many new content-based services to take advantage of efficient high-speed data services that can reach up to 2 Mbps. The key applications can be classified as person-to-person communications, mobile entertainment, wireless advertising, mobile transactions, location-based services, mobile information, and business solutions. By focusing on these key applications and establishing partnerships with content providers, operators will be able to increase profits and customers will improve their lifestyle. Industry standards are necessary to allow common technology to be shared among many manufacturers. Hundreds of manufacturers, carriers, and associations have participated in the development of third generation industry standards. In an unprecedented move by the different national standards committees, a harmonization effort produced a single source of third generation standards. The third generation partnership program (3GPP) was composed of national standards committees that balanced their individual country's interests with the global needs of the third generation systems. These groups worked together to create the specification for the third generation universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS). This book arrives at a fortunate time for the wireless industry. The amount of new technology, human resources, and capital that will be invested in third generation wireless technology is huge. While second generation digital wireless technology has been successful, to sustain the rapid growth and maintain a competitive advantage, new third generation capabilities are essential for new emerging markets. A balanced understanding between market needs and technology availability is required to achieve success. This book describes the new services and technologies third generation digital systems can provide along with the financial considerations for its deployment.