Mobile phones are nowadays used for much more than just
voice communication. People increasingly use their handsets
to take digital photos and videos, play games and listen to
music. This places increasing demands on both the technical
capabilities of the cellular networks as well as the costs
associated with operating them. 3G LTE includes significant
improvements in the radio interface, enables a lower data
access cost per megabyte and makes several potentially
important new services technically feasible. This means it
could have a decisive advantage over alternative wireless
technologies that currently compete with 3GPP technologies.
As shown in this paper, 3G LTE makes possible the cost efficient
delivery of considerable amounts of data to large
numbers of customers. It also provides a new digital channel
that can support well-managed access to an extensive array of
novel content and new, compelling services. Finally, 3G LTE
and its SAE networks are directly based on existing 2G and
3G systems. 3G LTE is therefore the likely choice, among
several competing wireless technologies, to take the leading
role in the further technical evolution of the mobile world.