UMTS

Technology & Computing abbreviation · Telecom

UMTS
Stands forUniversal Mobile Telecommunications System
CategoriesTechnology & Computing

UMTS stands for Universal Mobile Telecommunications System, a telecom abbreviation.

3G mobile standard developed by 3GPP as the successor to GSM, used by most 3G networks outside the CDMA world. It introduced faster packet data and video calling.

Example: My phone shows "UMTS" in the network settings when it's on the 3G network.

Usage notes

UMTS was specified in 3GPP's first release, Release 99. In 2000 the United Kingdom auctioned UMTS licenses for about 22.5 billion pounds, a price that burdened operators for years. UMTS evolved into HSPA. Operators in Europe, including the main UK networks, switched off UMTS between the early and mid-2020s.

More telecom abbreviations

  • SMS – Short Message Service
  • T1 – Transmission System 1
  • TDD – Time-division duplex
  • TDMA – Time-division multiple access
  • TTY – Teletypewriter (Unix terminal)
  • UC – Unified communications
  • USSD – Unstructured Supplementary Service Data
  • UWB – Ultra-wideband
  • VDSL – Very-high-bit-rate digital subscriber line
  • VoIP – Voice over Internet Protocol
  • VoLTE – Voice over LTE
  • VoNR – Voice over New Radio

See all 114 telecom abbreviations →