What is 3G

What is 3G?

• 3G (third generation) is a collection of international standards and technologies.
• 3G increases efficiency by improving the performance of mobile wireless networks.

1G – 2G – 3G

• 1G – Analog networks
• 2G – Digital wireless phone on circuit switched networks
• 3G – Digital wireless phone on packet switched networks

The Speed

• Up to 144Kbps in a high-speed moving environment (Present)
• Up to 384Kbps in a low-speed moving environment (Present)
• Up to 2Mbps in a stationary environment (Future)

Note: The speed for 2G is 9.6 kbps – 14.4 kbps.

World’s First 3G Netowrk

On May 30, 2001, NTT DoCoMO launched the world first application of W-CDMA, one of the IMT – 2000 global mobile communications standards.

With a maximum downlink transmission speed of 384 kbps.

Personal Scene

• Take on-line shopping for example. You will be able to view and select still images of merchandise, then make payments from your electronic wallet (Digital Catalog Shopping).
• Video Mail
• Mobile Banking
• Digital Information Delivery (Audio and Video)

Home Scene

• Directly connect to a home automation system and be able to turn on/off home appliances such as lighting and air conditioners.
• You will have a greater control of your home security system by displaying security monitor images on your cellular phone terminal display.

Entertainment Scene

• You will be able to view plays, concerts, and sports events in real-time.
• You will be able to download your favorite music, movies, and games at your leisure.
• You will be able to use the electronic encyclopedia, even with photographs.

Business Scene

• Retrieve vital business information from anywhere around the world.
• Conduct video conferencing with branch offices and business partners.
• Send/receive customer and sales data.

Reasons

• Greater efficiency
• Lower development costs
• Backward compatibility with 2G standards
• Key benefits:
• Up to double voice capacity of the network.
• A 10-fold increase in data speeds, from 14.4 kbps to 144 kbps.
• An approximately 50 percent increase battery performance life in standby mode.

Hurdles

• Not all handsets are 3G ready
• Higher revenue consumption
• Network roll-out investment

Revenues From 3G

• Charging for network access and airtime.
• Charging for content and value-added services or transactions (NTT i-mode).

The Impact

• No one can really predict how much impact 3G will have on our lives, but the impact will certainly be great.
• There will be a lot of e-commerce opportunity once the 3G is wildly used; however, finding the one golden opportunity is going to be challenging.