US : GSM operators and vendors committed to the deployment of EDGE 3G technology offered firsthand advice on the rollout, equipment, services and business case scenario of EDGE to an audience of 150 with international operators representing the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East at the EDGE Operators' Forum on November 19 in Rio de Janeiro.

Peter Reinisch, Vice President, GSA speaking at the event said: "Latin American operators are eager to deliver new revenue-generating services. They can clearly see that EDGE offers a cost-effective platform for quickly providing 3G multimedia services and at very low cost."

Contributions at the EDGE Operators' Forum were provided by AT&T Wireless, Digicel Jamaica, Telefonica Movil, TIM Brasil, TIM Italy, and TIM Peru, in addition to EDGE vendors, Alcatel, Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia, Nortel Networks, Siemens and Sony-Ericsson, and global wireless organizations GSA (Global mobile Suppliers Association) and GSM Association, and 3G Americas. The key points and conclusions from the meeting were as follows:

Launches and Deployment: EDGE is global. There have been seven commercial launches to date, including the recent launch of EDGE nationwide in the U.S. by AT&T Wireless. Many more announcements are expected.

Economies of scale: EDGE builds upon the economies of scale of the GSM family of technologies - GSM/GPRS/EDGE/WCDMA. Most base stations shipped in recent years are EDGE-capable. Most new GSM/GPRS terminals from 2004 will include EDGE as standard, ensuring EDGE will become mass market. The choice of EDGE devices shipping or announced is rapidly growing from all leading manufacturers.
Market readiness: MMS is taking off with at least 167 commercial services worldwide and a large number of MMS-featured phones on the market. GPRS and MMS roaming agreements between operators are being put in place, driving the uptake and preparing the market for EDGE.

Spectral efficiency: EDGE becomes a highly attractive solution for mobile operators in the Americas as the current macroeconomic conditions do not present a favourable outlook for radio spectrum licensing in the region. EDGE is deployed within an operator's existing spectrum increasing radio capacity and does not require a new 3G license.

Complementary to WCDMA: EDGE and WCDMA share the same packet core network, allowing operators, such as TIM Italy, the flexibility to deploy both technologies in a single harmonized network delivering optimum performance, coverage and flexibility at the lowest cost. For WCDMA license holders who rollout a joint WCDMA/EDGE network, instead of a fully WCDMA-enabled network, a CAPEX saving of 50% can be achieved.

Cost to upgrade: Operators reported that the cost to upgrade from GSM/GPRS to EDGE is typically about $1-$2 per person in their licensed area. Abundant choices in leading vendors for infrastructure, terminals and applications have made deployments competitive.
Technology Innovation: Service differentiation is another advantage provided to EDGE mobile operators who will be able to provide mobile wireless IP applications at practical datarates exceeding 110-120 Kbps in a loaded network. This allows EDGE operators to offer multimedia applications to their customers and securing a highly competitive place in the market as technological innovators.

EDGE is market reality and already adopted by 57 operators globally spanning all continents. Cingular Wireless launched the first EDGE-enabled services in Indianapolis in June 2003 and other launches have followed in Hong Kong, Thailand and Finland. In October, Telefonica Movil Chile became the first Latin American operator to launch EDGE-enabled services in its Santiago and Valparaiso markets. Earlier this week, the first nationwide EDGE deployment in the U.S. was announced by AT&T Wireless, covering 215 million potential subscribers.