Beyond 3G: compound wireless services

A key feature of third-generation wireless systems is support for high bit-rate telecommunications. This technology, known as code division multiple access, is being deployed in two versions: CDMA2000 for which the Telecommunications Industry Association committee TR-45 developed a standard, supports up to 2.4 Mbps, while wideband CDMA, standardized by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute, supports up to 8 Mbps. These high bit rates are leading to a plethora of new wireless services that broadly fall into three categories: information retrieval; mobile commerce; general communication. Next-generation wireless services enables users to carry out specialized, elaborate functions by combining component services offered by various sources. A compound wireless service consists of a combination of component wireless services in an executable sequence that a user can store in memory and invoke in the future when desired.