Mobile next-generation networks

Mobile next-generation networks (NGNs) are a necessary element in reaching the goal of truly ubiquitous computing. The Universal Mobile Telecommunication System, the third-generation mobile service concept, is a technology step to mobile NGNs. We can view NGNs as a merger of the Internet and intranets with mobile networks and with media and broadcast technologies. The Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS) is-from a radio perspective-a third-generation cellular technology, which is defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in its IMT-2000 framework (2001). From a conceptual point of view, it represents a technology step to mobile NGNs´ facilitating ubiquitous computing. Researchers conceived UMTS to combine Internet protocol (IP) and mobile technologies to offer personal communication and personalized content everywhere. Its goal is to apply Internet protocols for mobile services control and end-to-end applications. By analyzing the trends of key technologies, we can see how they drive the evolution of the Internet and mobile communications toward mobile NGNs. In this article, I describe the IP-based approach of UMTS for the provision of mobile multimedia services. The integration of WLAN into the UMTS architecture could indicate that the field is moving toward separating mobile and fixed Internet.