3GPP has released a statement insisting that the correct term for specifications defined under Release 10 and beyond is, and will be, LTE-Advanced.
The standards-setting body is worried that the shorthand adoption of LTE-A for LTE-Advanced is leading to the creeping use of terms such as LTE-B and LTE-C to describe technologies specified beyond the current R10 and R11 timeframe.
The 3GPP statement said:
“3GPP recognises that in the marketplace a number of differing terms related to LTE are appearing. 3GPP reaffirms that the naming for the technology family and its evolution continues to be covered by the term LTE-Advanced, which remains the correct description for specifications currently being defined – from Release 10 onwards, including 3GPP Release 12.”
Having seen this LTE-B term being picked up in a small number of companies so far, we in 3GPP wanted to make it clear that this is not a term that we have used
So what was the cause of this public memorandum? Kevin Flynn, Marketing and Communications Officer, 3GPP explained to The Mobile Network, “At last year’s 3GPP radio workshop – organised by 3GPP RAN Technical Group, we did see some PowerPoint shortening of LTE-Advanced to a shorthand version – LTE-A. One or two presentations took that shortening and then looked beyond the LTE-Advanced Release 10/11 timeframe and fell on the term LTE-B.
“Having seen this LTE-B term being picked up in a small number of companies so far, we in 3GPP wanted to make it clear that this is not a term that we have used in the specifications, and furthermore, we wish to state clearly that Release 12 is indeed LTE-Advanced and not an ‘A’ variant or a ‘B’ variant.
Flynn added that the body was making the statement to “help the industry to understand how the 3GPP Releases relate to LTE systems evolution.”
