Thirty years ago, I was a young, hopeful field support engineer working for a mobile network equipment vendor recently transitioned from a radio software developer. I was staying in Hagalund (a suburb of Stockholm)—or, more specifically, a hot rooftop storage room in Hagalund—waiting for the next software load from our systems integration team so I could load it onto our radio systems and start debugging one of the first 2G GSM networks being deployed by the Swedish mobile operator. It was an exciting time to be in telecommunications, even when it meant waiting around in a hot storage room.
GSM created a common standard so European mobile customers could move seamless between different GSM networks in different countries. At the same time, GSM was creating a single telecommunications equipment market for Europe that would soon extend to the whole world. The open standards defined by GSM opened new markets, created new rivalries, drove prices down, spurred innovation, and increased the quality of mobile communications. Yes, the phones were big, but the potential was even bigger. Click here to read the full story.