A wireless network for CTIA.

This paper deals with the wireless network provided by the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA) at its 2004 CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment event in San Francisco, California. CTIA, founded in 1984, is the international association for the wireless telecommunications industry, representing all sectors of wireless communications-cellular, personal communication services and enhanced specialized mobile radio. The organization holds several conventions, including CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment, which focuses on integrating wireless technologies into the enterprise and vertical business markets, such as healthcare, government, automotive and retail. Together, selected vendors in the wireless space were tasked with building a voice and data wireless network for the three-day event. This would serve as the largest public demonstration of voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) over wireless local area network to date and showcase that the technology--both in concept and in commercially available products--was enterprise ready. The wireless data traffic was carried on 802.11a/g, with the wireless VoIP traffic running on 802.11b. Overall, the network supported 1,872 unique users at the conference, and handled hundreds of separate voice calls and up to 30 simultaneous calls. INSET: The untethered business.