| Term |
Explanation |
| 3G |
Third Generation Mobile Services. |
| ACA |
Australian Communications Authority |
| ACCC |
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission |
| ACIF |
Australian Communications Industry Forum |
| AMPS |
Advanced Mobile Phone System. The analogue mobile phone system which operated in Australia until 2000. |
| Analogue |
The term used to describe the continuously variable wave form nature of voices and other signals. A signal for which the amplitude (strength) and frequency (tone) varies continuously. |
| any-to-any connectivity |
A network has this feature when subscribers to one network are able to call and receive calls from subscribers to an alternative network. |
| ARPANSA |
Australian Radiation Protection and National Safety Agency. |
| ATUG |
Australian Telecommunications Users Group |
| Bandwidth |
(1) The range of frequencies that an analogue transmission medium is capable of carrying. Measured in Hertz (cycles of electromagnetic radiation per second). (2) The data-carrying capacity of a (digital) network connection used as an indication of speed measured in bps. |
| Base Station |
Part of the infrastructure essential for network operation, base stations contain the radio equipment which serves the 'cell' |
| Bluetooth |
A system which allows the inter-related communication between mobile phones and stationery devices (such as computers). |
| bps |
Bits per second. Basic unit of measurement for serial data transmission capacity. |
| Carrier |
The holder of a telecommunications carrier licence under the Telecommunications Act 1997. |
| CDMA |
Code Division Multiple Access. A digital mobile phone technology developed to be compatible with analogue AMPS. Signals are spread across the entire available spectrum and are not confined to that part which would be allocated to an individual channel, allowing multiple calls to be placed on one channel. |
| Cell |
The geographical area covered by the network's base station |
| CLI |
Calling Line Identification |
| CND |
Calling Number Display. |
| Content Provider |
A company that provides services to mobile phone users or network operators. |
| CSP |
Carriage Service Provider. A party which uses it own or someone else's network facilities to provide basic or value-added communications services. |
| CTN |
Consumers' Telecommunications Network |
| DCITA |
The Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts |
| Digital |
The representation of a signal in the form of a stream of binary numbers rather than as an analogue electrical signal. |
| EDGE |
Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution |
| EME |
Electromagnetic Energy. |
| EMF |
Electromagnetic Field. |
| EMR |
Electromagnetic Radiation. |
| GHz (gigaherz) |
One billion Hertz. |
| GPRS |
General Packet Radio Service |
| GSM |
Global System for Mobiles. A digital mobile phone technology based on time division multiple access. |
| ICNIEP |
International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation. |
| IMEI |
International Mobile Equipment Identifier. |
| i-mode |
|
| ITU |
International Telecommunications Union. |
| Java |
An industry standard object-oriented language and virtual machine |
| kbps |
Kilobits (thousands of bits) per second. |
| LCS |
Local carriage service. This is where the access provider provides the wholesale or network elements of local calls, and the access seeker provides the retail elements such as billing. |
| mbps |
mega-bites per second |
| MHz (megaherz) |
One million Hertz. |
| Microwave |
A high frequency form of radio transmission (generally over 1 GHz). |
| MMS |
Multimedia Messaging Service |
| NRS |
National Relay Service. |
| Number Portability |
An arrangement that allows subscribers of a telecommunications service to change carriers without having to change their number. |
| Packet switching |
A method of transmitting messages by subdividing them into short packets containing the data and a destination address. Each is passed from source to destination through intermediate nodes which direct each packet onwards, not necessarily by the same route. The packets are reassembled into the original message at the receiving end. |
| Polyphonic |
Polyphonic ring tones vary in specification from phone to phone, but all polyphonic phones support the playing of more than one note together, so a ring tone is generally more musical. |
| Port |
Noun: A point of access into a communications switch, a computer, a network or other electronic device. |
| Port |
Verb: To transfer a telephone number from one carrier to another (through number portability). |
| Premium Services |
A carriage service or a content service using a number with a prefix starting with ‘190’. |
| Real (or true) Tones |
Ring tones that are an extract from patented music |
| RF |
Radio Frequency. |
| RF Dosimetry |
The measurement or calculation of RF dose. |
| Roaming |
Roaming allows you to use your mobile phone on other networks other than the one you pay. Roaming can be Australia wide or international. For more information on roaming please click to view AMTA's Australian and International roaming tips. |
| SAR |
Specific Absorption Rate. |
| SETEL |
The Small Enterprise Telecommunications Centre Limited |
| SIM |
Subscriber Identity Module |
| SMS |
Short Message Service. |
| Spectrum |
The bandwidth of a communications system, expressed in terms of the frequencies it can carry. |
| TIO |
Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. |
| TISSC |
Telephone Information Services Standards Council |
| TTY |
Teletypewriter (used for text communications for people with a hearing impairment.) |
| UMTS |
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System |
| Value added services |
Services provided over a public or private network which, in some way add value to the basic carriage services (such as storing and forwarding messages). |
| Virtual Private Network |
A software defined network offered by telephone carriers for voice and data communications among multiple sites. The network provides the appearance of a private network, except that it makes use of the public switched network rather than physically dedicated leased lines. |
| VoIP |
Voice over Internet Protocols. Enables voice communication to be transmitted and received via the internet. |
| Wallpaper |
Wallpaper is displayed in the background of the mobile phone display. |
| WAP |
Wireless Application Protocol. |
| WHO |
World Health Organisation. |
| Wireless Local Loop |
A system where fixed radio systems are used instead of copper pairs to provide a connection between a handset (fixed or mobile) and a telecommunications base station or network. |
