Cellular networks - Evolution of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)

The third-generation (3G) UMTS mobile radio network was launched in France at the end of 2004 by operators SFR and Orange France, based on the first version of the standard, Release 99. The UMTS standard is drafted by the global organization 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) and standardized at continental level, by ETSI in Europe (European Telecommunications Standards Institute). Most equipment manufacturers have based their first UMTS implementations on Release 99, which has also been acclaimed by third-generation mobile network operators. This first version of the standard is extensively described in the dossier . But what has happened since then at 3GPP?

In Release 4, 3GPP upgraded the core network to NGN, and in Release 5 introduced the new IMS domain, characterized by SIP signaling, while in terms of the radio interface, it offered "mobile broadband" with HSDPA. In Release 6, UMTS was also equipped with HSUPA and MBMS functionalities.

3GPP is finalizing the development of the fifth version of UMTS (Release 7) and is already working on the "post-G3" long-term evolution of UMTS (LTE/SAE).

In 2006, SFR and Orange France extended their mobile broadband offering with HSDPA, while Bouygues Télécom announced the possible opening of a UMTS network by 2007, based directly on HSDPA.

This dossier is complementary to the one introducing UMTS and aims to present the major developments in UMTS Release 99, focusing on both the access network and the core network, as well as the services associated with the third-generation mobile system.