the/3g/portal

After tracking news about 3G since May 2000, we are now switching to 4G.

The 4 G Portal: A collection of information, news and opinion on 4G, an acronym for Fourth-Generation Communications System, is a term used to describe the next step in wireless communications. Find it here

3G devices can no longer be classified as smart phones. In prior years, a clear distinction could have been drawn between smart phones and feature phones using 3G capability. But this barrier has been blurred with modest feature phones carrying 3G capabilities on one end and high-end devices such as the iPhone relying on the 2.5 G EDGE network on the other.

A federal judge in California ruled on Monday that wireless chip maker Qualcomm Inc must immediately stop selling third-generation, or 3G, WCDMA cellular chips that infringe on the Broadcom Corp patents.

The shares of Chinese telecoms companies listed in Hong Kong surged yesterday on what the industry’s regulator and a government researcher called speculative reports about the long-awaited introduction of 3G mobile services.

Shares in local telecom firms jumped yesterday on a report the State Council had approved a plan to launch 3G services, which analysts and officials said could be a misinterpretation. China Unicom, the nation’s second largest mobile carrier, closed at 12.29 yuan in Shanghai yesterday, up 8.82 percent. ZTE Corp, the nation’s second biggest phone-equipment maker, gained 4.39 yuan, or 7.4 percent, to 63.69 yuan.

Taiwan’s National Communications Commission (NCC) has encouraged operators of 3G and/or 2G mobile communication services to set up base stations in common structures where possible, but it may not be easy to additionally set up WiMAX base stations at such locations, according to the Taiwan Telecommunication Industry Development Association (TTIDA).

Nokia and STMicroelectronics have finalised a licensing and supply deal for 3G chipsets first unveiled in August, the two companies said. Some 185 Nokia employees in Finland and the UK are transferring to STMicro as part of the agreement, they said. The companies had initially expected around 200 staff to switch as part of the agreement, which saw Nokia award STMicro its first contract for the design of a complete 3G chipset.

A war over who will grab juicy opportunities in the high-stakes telecommunications game got hotter on Monday with the government announcing guidelines for operators to offer third-generation (3G) mobile telephony, with a plan to auction the relevant spectrum.

Vendors including Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics showed off over 50 mobile phones being readied for the launch of China’s 3G (third-generation mobile telecommunications) network, an important step in ensuring a smooth launch of mobile services next year.

VoIP-over-3G will be far more successful than the voice-over-Wi-Fi approach being touted by many communications providers, a new report suggests. According to analyst Dean Bubley, of Disruptive Analysis, there could be more than 250 million ‘VoIPo3G’ users by the end of 2012. Because operators tend to block such use, hardly anyone uses the technology in this way at the moment.