The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is a collaboration between groups of telecommunications associations, known as the Organizational Partners. The initial scope of 3GPP was to make a globally applicable third-generation (3G) mobile phone system specification based on evolved Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) specifications within the scope of the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 project of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The scope was later enlarged^[1] to include the development and maintenance of:

• the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) including GSM evolved radio access technologies (e.g. General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) and Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE))
• an evolved third Generation and beyond Mobile System based on the evolved 3GPP core networks, and the radio access technologies supported by the Partners (i.e., UTRA both FDD and TDD modes).
• an evolved IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) developed in an access independent manner

3GPP standardization encompasses Radio, Core Network and Service architecture.^[2] The project was established in December 1998 and should not be confused with 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2), which specifies standards for another 3G technology based on IS-95 (CDMA), commonly known as CDMA2000. The 3GPP support team (also known as the "Mobile Competence Centre") is located at the ETSI headquarters in Sophia-Antipolis (France).^[3]

Organizational Partners[link]

The six 3GPP Organizational Partners are from Asia, Europe and North America. Their aim is to determine the general policy and strategy of 3GPP and perform the following tasks:

• The approval and maintenance of the 3GPP scope;
• The maintenance of the Partnership Project Description;
• Take the decision to create or cease a Technical Specification Groups, and approve their scope and terms of reference;
• The approval of Organizational Partner funding requirements;
• The allocation of human and financial resources provided by the Organizational Partners to the Project Co-ordination Group;
• Act as a body of appeal on procedural matters referred to them.

Together with the Market Representation Partners (MRPs) perform the following tasks:

• The maintenance of the Partnership Project Agreement;
• The approval of applications for 3GPP partnership;
• Take the decision against a possible dissolution of 3GPP.

Market Representation Partners[link]

The 3GPP Organizational Partners can invite a Market Representation Partner to take part in 3GPP, which:

• Has the ability to offer market advice to 3GPP and to bring into 3GPP a consensus view of market requirements (e.g., services, features and functionality) falling within the 3GPP scope;
• Does not have the capability and authority to define, publish and set standards within the 3GPP scope, nationally or regionally;
• Has committed itself to all or part of the 3GPP scope;
• Has signed the Partnership Project Agreement.

As of December 2011 the Market Representation Partners are:

Standards[link]

3GPP standards are structured as Releases. Discussion of 3GPP thus frequently refers to the functionality in one release or another.

Each release incorporates hundreds of individual standards documents, each of which may have been through many revisions. Current 3GPP standards incorporate the latest revision of the GSM standards.

The documents are available freely on 3GPP's Web site. While 3GPP standards can be bewildering to the newcomer, they are remarkably complete and detailed, and provide insight into how the cellular industry works. They cover not only the radio part ("Air Interface") and Core Network, but also billing information and speech coding down to source code level. Cryptographic aspects (authentication, confidentiality) are also specified in detail. 3GPP2 offers similar information about its system.

Specification groups[link]

The 3GPP specification work is done in Technical Specification Groups (TSGs) and Working Groups (WGs).^[11]

There are four Technical Specifications Groups:

• GERAN (GSM/EDGE Radio Access Network): GERAN specifies the GSM radio technology, including GPRS and EDGE. It is composed of three working groups.
• RAN (Radio Access Network): RAN specifies the UTRAN and the E-UTRAN. It is composed of five working groups.
• SA (Service and System Aspects): SA specifies the service requirements and the overall architecture of the 3GPP system. It is also responsible for the coordination of the project. SA is composed of five working groups.
• CT (Core Network and Terminals): CT specifies the core network and terminal parts of 3GPP. It includes the core network - terminal layer 3 protocols. It is composed of four working groups.

The 3GPP structure also includes a Project Coordination Group, which is the highest decision-making body. Its missions include the management of overall timeframe and work progress.

Standardization process[link]

3GPP standardization work is contribution-driven. Companies ("individual members") participate through their membership to a 3GPP Organizational Partner. As of April 2011, 3GPP is composed of more than 370 individual members.^[12]

Specification work is done at WG and at TSG level^[13]:

• the 3GPP WGs hold several meetings a year. They prepare and discuss change requests against 3GPP specifications. A change request accepted at WG level is called "agreed".
• the 3GPP TSGs hold plenary meetings quarterly. The TSGs can "approve" the change requests that were agreed at WG level. Some specifications are under the direct responsibility of TSGs and therefore, change requests can also be handled at TSG level. The approved change requests are subsequently incorporated in 3GPP specifications.

3GPP follows a three-stage methodology as defined in ITU-T Recommendation I.130^[14]:

• stage 1 specifications define the service requirements from the user point of view.
• stage 2 specifications define an architecture to support the service requirements.
• stage 3 specifications define an implementation of the architecture by specifying protocols in details.

Test specifications are sometimes defined as stage 4, as they follow stage 3.

Specifications are grouped into releases. A release consists of a set of internally consistent set of features and specifications.

Timeframes are defined for each release by specifying freezing dates. Once a release is frozen, only essential corrections are allowed (i.e. addition and modifications of functions are forbidden). Freezing dates are defined for each stage.

The 3GPP specifications are transposed into deliverables by the Organizational Partners.

Deployment[link]

3GPP systems are deployed across much of the established GSM market.^[15][16] They are primarily Release 6 systems, but as of 2010, growing interest in HSPA+ and LTE is driving adoption of Release 7 and its successors. Since 2005, 3GPP systems were seeing deployment in the same markets as 3GPP2 systems (for example, North America^[17]). With LTE the official successor to 3GPP2's CDMA systems, 3GPP-based systems will eventually become the single global mobile standard.^{[citation needed]}

See also[link]

• Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)
• 3GPP Long Term Evolution
• Evolution to 3G
• IP Multimedia Subsystem
• 3GP
• 3GPP2 - The 3GPP's counterpart in the CDMA2000 sphere.
• GSM services
• Telecoms & Internet converged Services & Protocols for Advanced Networks (TISPAN)
• Open Mobile Alliance
• Service layer
• European Telecommunications Standards Institute
• OpenBTS, an open source GSM stack

References[link]

External links[link]

• 3GPP website
• 3GPP Standards List of Acronyms & Terminology
• 3GPP specifications
• 3GPP releases descriptions
• ETSI GSM UMTS 3GPP Numbering Cross Reference
• TS/TR
• specification numbering
• Tool for visualizing multiple inter-related 3gpp standards