Editing 4G (section)

== IMT-Advanced requirements ==
This article refers to 4G using IMT-Advanced (''International Mobile Telecommunications Advanced''), as defined by [[ITU-R]]. An IMT-Advanced [[mobile phone|cellular system]] must fulfill the following requirements:<ref name="Vilches, J. 2010">{{cite web |url=http://www.techspot.com/guides/272-everything-about-4g/page3.html |title=Everything You Need To Know About 4G Wireless Technology |last=Vilches |first=J. |website=TechSpot |date=April 29, 2010 |access-date=January 11, 2016}}</ref>
* Be based on an all-IP packet switched network.
* Have peak data rates of up to approximately 100{{nbsp}}Mbit/s for high mobility such as mobile access and up to approximately 1{{nbsp}}Gbit/s for low mobility such as nomadic/local wireless access.<ref name="IMT-Advanced-requirements" />
* Be able to dynamically share and use the network resources to support more simultaneous users per cell.
* Use scalable channel bandwidths of 5–20&nbsp;MHz, optionally up to 40&nbsp;MHz.<ref name="IMT-Advanced-requirements" /><ref>{{cite journal|url=http://cp.literature.agilent.com/litweb/pdf/5989-9793EN.pdf |first=Moray |last=Rumney |title=IMT-Advanced: 4G Wireless Takes Shape in an Olympic Year |journal=Agilent Measurement Journal |date=September 2008 |url-status=dead  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160117165338/http://cp.literature.agilent.com/litweb/pdf/5989-9793EN.pdf |archive-date=January 17, 2016 }}</ref>
* Have peak [[link spectral efficiency]] of 15{{nbsp}}bit/s·Hz in the downlink, and 6.75{{nbsp}}bit/s·Hz in the up link (meaning that 1{{nbsp}}Gbit/s in the downlink should be possible over less than 67&nbsp;MHz bandwidth).
* [[System spectral efficiency]] is, in indoor cases, 3{{nbsp}}bit/s·Hz·cell for downlink and 2.25{{nbsp}}bit/s·Hz·cell for up link.<ref name="IMT-Advanced-requirements" />
* Smooth handovers across heterogeneous networks.

In September 2009, the technology proposals were submitted to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as 4G candidates.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nomor-research.com/home/technology/3gpp-newsletter/2009-12-the-way-of-lte-towards-4g |title=2009-12: The way of LTE towards 4G |work=Nomor Research |access-date=January 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160117172311/http://www.nomor-research.com/home/technology/3gpp-newsletter/2009-12-the-way-of-lte-towards-4g |archive-date=January 17, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Basically all proposals are based on two technologies:

* [[LTE Advanced]] standardized by the [[3GPP]]
* [[802.16m]] standardized by the [[IEEE]]

Implementations of Mobile WiMAX and first-release LTE were largely considered a stopgap solution that would offer a considerable boost until WiMAX 2 (based on the 802.16m specification) and LTE Advanced was deployed. The latter's standard versions were ratified in spring 2011.

The first set of 3GPP requirements on LTE Advanced was approved in June 2008.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.3gpp.org/ftp/Specs/html-info/36913.htm |title=3GPP specification: Requirements for further advancements for E-UTRA (LTE Advanced) |website=3GPP |access-date=August 21, 2013}}</ref> LTE Advanced was standardized in 2010 as part of Release 10 of the 3GPP specification.

Some sources consider first-release LTE and Mobile WiMAX implementations as pre-4G or near-4G, as they do not fully comply with the planned requirements of 1{{nbsp}}Gbit/s for stationary reception and 100{{nbsp}}Mbit/s for mobile.

Confusion has been caused by some mobile carriers who have launched products advertised as 4G but which according to some sources are pre-4G versions, commonly referred to as 3.9G, which do not follow the ITU-R defined principles for 4G standards, but today can be called 4G according to ITU-R. [[Vodafone Netherlands]] for example, advertised LTE as 4G, while advertising LTE Advanced as their '4G+' service. A common argument for branding 3.9G systems as new-generation is that they use different frequency bands from 3G technologies; that they are based on a new radio-interface paradigm; and that the standards are not backwards compatible with 3G, whilst some of the standards are forwards compatible with IMT-2000 compliant versions of the same standards.