GSM Focus On 3G Speed Up

The GSM Association's new Board declared that shortening the time to market and ensuring the global availability of new and developing wireless services were its two key
strategic goals for 2003.

Chairman of the new GSMA Board, Craig Ehrlich expects to see more than 30 launches in the near term.

At the conclusion of its first formal meeting, the GSM Association's CEO and Board Member, Rob Conway said: "Our primary goal is to accelerate the global rollout and interoperability of advanced mobile multimedia services,
with emphasis on speeding the introduction of 3G services throughout the world.

"We are re-invigorating the core principles behind GSM's phenomenal
success, where the unique blending of operator strategy setting and guidance
at the most senior executive levels and strong vendor commitment have brought
the GSM world to the door step of breaking the one billion customer mark."
"Our aims will be to inject strategic, market based focus to the
definition of collectively identified operator needs; to condense timescales
for new product and service offerings, and enhance the simplicity and seamless
availability of new services we deliver to our customers. These are the keys
that will unlock even further success for the GSM industry," said Conway.
"We will look to help the industry by unifying the voice that speaks on
behalf of our community to vendors, suppliers and the standards bodies. We are
looking at a short list of specific activities - some of which are too
sensitive to reveal at this stage," said Conway. "Though clearly, accelerating
interoperability and roaming for networks, terminals and services were high on
the agenda, as were greater consistency of terminal features and
functionality, among others."

In today's marketplace, accelerating MMS interoperability is a high
priority for the GSM Association and the Board. The GSMA will look at helping
to drive and define terminal interoperability, availability and usability,
ensuring that compelling new services can be delivered as simply and quickly
as possible throughout the world, therefore encouraging increased mobile
service uptake and usage.

"Terminals are the most visible element of our services to the customer
and we believe there is much to do to enhance interoperability, user
interfaces and timely availability of terminals," said Conway.
In addition, a huge focus for the Association will be on ensuring
vitality and commercial take up of W-CDMA - the technology over which 3G
services are delivered. Part of the GSMA's effort will involve correcting the
misperceptions about W-CDMA.

"The W-CDMA standard is the global choice of operators, and it was chosen
on the basis of its robust capabilities, wide ranging multimedia
possibilities, and vast potential economies of scale," said Chairman of the
new GSMA Board, Craig Ehrlich.

"No other standard comes close, no other standard is as open, and no
other standard will provide the seamless global evolution from today's GSM
with the support of the world's largest wireless carriers. We expect more than
30 launches happening in the near term and the commitment of operators to
deploy should not be doubted," he said.

"The Board is determined that the GSMA will deal in facts and correct the
fiction, and the facts are that W-CDMA is the defacto global 3G standard and
the technology of choice for eight out of ten of the digital wireless
carriers. The Board is to speak up on these issues, to correct the
misinformation and misconceptions, and support the developing 3GSM industry,"
concluded Ehrlich.

Mauro Sentinelli, Managing Director of TIM (Telecom Italia Mobile) was
elected Deputy Chairman of the new GSMA Board today.

This Press Release Sponsored by AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES

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