COSTA MESA, Calif., July 25, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- The CDMA Development Group reported today that the Global Handset Requirements for CDMA (GHRC) team has developed and published common requirements for different classes of CDMA2000(r) handsets to reduce cost and time-to-market as well as to facilitate service provisioning across CDMA2000 networks.
"As devices become increasingly more sophisticated and CDMA2000 expands worldwide to markets with very diverse needs, the work of the GHRC is needed to manage the CDMA2000 product portfolio effectively," commented Perry LaForge, executive director of the CDG. "Using common requirements, handset manufacturers are able to streamline their development and manufacturing processes, and operators and their customers will have a greater variety of CDMA2000 handsets, quicker and, potentially, at lower cost."
The GHRC team was established in 2004 and is comprised of more than thirty CDG member companies who represent large, medium and small CDMA2000 operators and handset, chipset and R-UIM card manufacturers from around the world. The team is open to all CDG member companies. Its objective is to define common requirements for CDMA2000 devices for services such as voice, SMS, MMS, LBS, BREW and JAVA implementations, as well as 1xEV-DO functionality. The team has already developed eight requirements documents for tiers of handsets to meet different market needs, ranging from low-tier with basic functionality to high-tier models with the most advanced features. Work on requirements for R-UIM (smart card-based) CDMA2000 handsets and CDMA at 450 MHz is well underway.
"Nokia has been an active member and strong supporter of GHRC from day one," said Larry Paulson, Vice President, Business and Product Strategy of Nokia. "It is a win-win relationship for operators and manufacturers. By working closely with CDMA operators on the GHRC team, we are able to deliver the products they want faster and to a broader range of CDMA operators."
"As a medium-sized operator, we don't have the purchasing power to get the breadth of products and prices that large operators have," said Gil Sharon Deputy CEO of Pelephone. "By using common requirements with other operators we are now able to negotiate better terms with manufacturers and match prices of our 3G CDMA devices with those of our 2G GSM competitors."
Additional information regarding CDG teams, including the GHRC, is available on the CDG website at www.cdg.org.
About CDG
The CDMA Development Group is a trade association formed to foster the worldwide development, implementation and use of CDMA technologies. The more than 100 member companies of the CDG include many of the world's largest wireless carriers and equipment manufacturers. The primary activities of the CDG include development of CDMA features and services, public relations, education and seminars, regulatory affairs and international support. Currently, there are more than 500 individuals working within various CDG subcommittees on CDMA-related matters. For more information about the CDG, contact the CDG News Bureau at +1-714-540-1030, ext. 17, or vchristopherson@bockpr.com, or visit the CDG Web site at www.cdg.org.