3G Mobile Phone
Third Generation or popularly known as 3G is the third installment in the mobile phones standards and technology based on the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) group of standards under the International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT-2000) programme.
The 3G mobile phone technology is more advanced than the 2G or second generation technology in terms of range of services and network capacity. Mobile phones providers utilising the 3G mobile phone technology are able to provide services that include wireless voice telephony, fast broadband wireless data transmission, video calls - all in mobile setup.
The 3G Mobile Phone Technology in Australia
The 3G mobile phone technology started rolling out in Australia in 2003. In April 2003 when Hutchison Telecommunications launched the first 3G network called "Three" covering Melbourne and Sydney. In July 2003, the 3G network covered Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide. In August 2004, Telstra struck an agreement with Hutchison to launch its 3G mobile phone services in September 2005. Optus conducted trials on a 3G technology and partnered with Vodafone on this endeavor. October 2006 witnessed the launching of Telstra's "Next G(tm)", the largest and fastest 3G UMTS/HSDPA network.
Basically, there are five main suppliers of 3G mobile phone technology in Australia: Telstra, Optus, Hutchison, Vodafone and Qualcomm. Australian 3G mobile phone operators are offering to users various services such as online music videos, ringtones, short films, news and sports and exercise programs as part of their mobile phone deals.
Issues on 3G Mobile Phone Technology
The 3G mobile phone technology roll out is delayed for various reasons. One is the enormous costs of spectrum purchases, which inhibit operators to adapt the 3G mobile phone technology. Another is the shortage of handsets that are 3G capable and the lack of content drivers while other formats and operating systems don't support 3G mobile phone technology.
Other issues that 3G mobile phone suppliers and operators must deal with are the intellectual property rights and content management on a global scale. The costs of deals for film, music and other online services are also factors in the delay or low 3G mobile phone technology turnout.