22-09-2008, 09:31 AM
UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) is an industry collaboration to extend GSM and GPRS services nto customer sites by utilizing unlicensed radio technologies such as Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) and Bluetooth?. This is achieved by tunnelling GSM and GPRS protocols through a broadband IP network towards the Access Point situated in the customer site and across the unlicensed radio link to the mobile device.
Thus UMA provides an additional access network to the existing GERAN (GSM EDGE Radio Access Network) and UTRAN (UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network).