Seminar paper from the year 2003 in the subject Computer Science - Commercial Information Technology, grade: 1,7 (A-), European Business School - International University Schloß Reichartshausen Oestrich-Winkel (Department of Information Systems), course: Seminar, 7th Semester, language: English, abstract: This paper evaluates the impact of the UMTS experience for forthcoming network generations. Therefore, it is necessary to show the development of mobile networks from the beginning on. During the evolution process, formerly analogue networks transformed to digital ones with more and more services that added value to customers life and consequently became very popular. In these days, mobile operators are trying to migrate their second generation networks to third generation which was supposed to be a globally accepted standard offering high data transfer speeds. However, an in-depth look at the technical and financial background of the 3G implementation shows that provider promises and user expectations differ. This will not only affect 3G, but also upcoming network generations like 4G. In the following, continuous delays in the 3G launch and advanced research in 4G technology in combination with upgrades to existing 2G network infrastructure are discovered as threads questioning the success of 3G.