The UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunication System) is the protocol that is used in Europe for the 3rd generation mobile phones. Integrated into the project to create a standard that can be used worldwide (unlike the 2nd generation, whose European and American systems are incompatible), UMTS will alter the way mobile phones are used today, allowing multimedia capabilities and access unlimited Internet access.
With the technological advances of recent years within the Internet and mobile telephony, we are witnessing now a growing convergence between these two media. The UMTS will represent the union of both in a single platform. Also referred to as 3G, or third-generation mobile phones, this system will allow the user to access images and videos as well as fast Internet access, voice quality almost equal to that of fixed networks and countless other functions. This system will surpass the current second generation in a matter of capacity and quality by enabling mobile access to information, personalized and easily accessible.
UMTS: Why? and How it works?
The UMTS is the need to introduce a new generation of mobile phones because of the increased number of users of this medium. The success of the GSM system within Europe, led to the saturation of radio frequencies that were originally allocated. Such a problem created the need to launch a new generation and through this, expand the available electromagnetic spectrum and to allow access to new services.
In January this year, the ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) decided to adopt the UMTS and the new European standard for mobile communications, hoping to repeat the success achieved with GSM. The UMTS is the European version of IMT-2000, the standard adopted by the ITU (International Telecommunication Union), which seeks to become the international standard of telecommunications technology, thus allowing roaming worldwide. UMTS technology is not limited to mobile networks, being intended for use by other networks.
The digital technology used by the UMTS is designated WCMDA (Wide Code Division Multiple Access). Data is transmitted over broadband, being divided into packets before transmission, which are then collected by the terminal before submitting the information on the screen. This system is based on the American protocol of the second generation mobile phones (the CMDA), not being compatible with GSM.
