3GPP Freezes Final Version of LTE as Release 8, Ratification in March 2009

The 3GPP working group has announced that LTE has successfully completed the functional standard freeze period, and will officially ratify the standard within the 3GPP framework as 3GPP Release 8 within the wider standards family in March 2009.

With this development, LTE equipment manufacturers can now focus on fine-tuning the standard to ensure optimal performance under many conditions while carriers can proceed with early deployment plans without investing in non-standard equipment or worries of compatibility across equipment manufacturers.