Mobile networks worldwide have now undergone a significant enhancement from a voice call based system to allow them to efficiently carry IP data traffic at significantly higher speeds.  GSM networks have been enhanced with GPRS capabilities while CDMA networks have been upgraded with the cdma2000 technology. Both systems allow for mobile subscribers to instantly connect to the Internet or a corporate IP network to exchange information and access services tailored for mobile users.

Since the launch of these capabilities we have seen the introduction of many new services that are based on this underlying packet data connection. WAP services allow users to use built-in browsers on their phones to view web content, while MMS services allow people to send and receive multimedia content such as pictures, sounds, video and polyphonic ring-tones. All of these services are built upon the capability of mobile networks to transfer IP packet data across their networks.

A further enhancement in mobile network technology is the third generation (3G) of mobile networks.  They provide far higher capacity in terms of data throughput, which means that far richer content can be sent and received across a mobile link. GSM based networks will continue to evolve over the coming years with EDGE and WCDMA functionality and CDMA networks will be enhanced with new cdma2000 technology. Both evolutions principally involve an enhancement of the radio transmission networks as well as an evolution of their capabilities in enabling more advanced multimedia sessions.

Read more about GSM, GPRS and EDGE here

Read more about CDMA2000 here

Migration to CDMA2000 1xEV-DV - An overview and checklist for Ericsson Mobility World Application Developers

Read more about 3G here