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Glossary of Terms
ACTIVATIONConfiguration of a wireless phone so that it is ready to be used to transmit and receive calls on the wireless network. AirtimeThe basic unit of charge is minutes of airtime. Subscribers are charged airtime both when they originate and when they receive calls. ALPHANUMERIC DISPLAYA display, usually LCD, that has the ability to display both text and numbers. Most often found on the front of a wireless handset or pager. AMPSAn analog cellular phone service standard used in the US and other countries. ANALOGA method of modulating radio signals so that they can carry information such as voice or data. ANNUAL SYSTEM ACCESS FEEThe Annual System Access Fee recovers overhead costs, licensing costs and cellular access costs that are charged to TBayTel Mobility. This fee is billed to you on the anniversary of the start date of your cellular service. Each cell phone is subject to an Annual System Access Fee. This fee will appear under the section of your bill named, "Other Charges and Credits". ANTENNAA length of wire that radiates or captures radio signals; the distinctive "pig tail" needed to operate a cellular car phone. AREA CODEA three digit telephone number prefix assigned to a calling area. AUTOMATIC CALL DELIVERYA service feature that allows a user to receive calls when roaming outside of the phone's home coverage area. BANDA portion of the radio frequency spectrum. Cellular communications take place in the 800 MHz region of the UHF band. BANDWIDTHDescribes the transmission capacity of a medium in terms of a range of frequencies. A greater bandwidth indicates the ability to transmit a greater amount of data over a given period of time. BROADBANDDescribes a communications medium capable of transmitting a relatively large amount of data over a given period of time. A communications channel of high bandwidth. CALLER IDA feature that displays a caller's telephone number before the call is answered. Ensure auto-answer is turned off. CARRIERA company that provides telecommunications services. CDMAA digital communication technology used by some carries to provide PCS service. Other technologies used are TDMA and GSM. Code Division Multiple Access operating at the 800 MHz frequency band, CDMA has the highest capacity of any digital technology to date. TBayTel Mobility offers CDMA digital service. CELLA section of the coverage area, usually one to ten miles in radius, and the basic geographical element upon which cellular service is based. Conceptually, the cell is hexagon-shaped; in actuality its shape depends on geographic considerations. CELL SITEThe base station of a cell, which includes an antenna and low-powered transceivers and computerized equipment to service mobile units in that cell. CELLULAR TO LANDLINE CALLSThe TBayTel Mobility network is fully integrated with the TBayTel system; when placing or receiving calls, customers are unaware of the computerized switching between networks which takes place. CHANNELThe radio channel or frequency at which a radio telephone conversation is transmitted. CLONEA wireless phone that has been programmed to mimic another wireless phone. Often used to defraud a wireless carrier by placing illegal calls without any intention of payment. COVERAGE AREAThe geographic area served by a wireless system. Same as service area. CROSS TALKA signal leak from one channel to another often the cause of noise and distortion. DECIBALA unit of measure to express relative difference in power or intensity of sound. DIGITALA method of encoding information using a binary code of 0s and 1s. Most newer wireless phones and networks use digital technology. True digital cellular commonly refers to CDMA based digital wireless technology. DUAL BANDA feature on some wireless phones that allows the handset to operate using either 800 MHz cellular or the 1900 MHz PCS frequencies. DUAL MODEA feature on some wireless phones that allows the handset to operate on both analog and digital networks. The ability to send and receive text messages through a wireless handset. ESNThe unique serial number of a cellular phone that identifies it to the cellular system for the purpose of placing and receiving calls. HANDSHAKESignals between a wireless phone and a wireless system to accomplish call setup. HOME COVERAGE AREAA designated area within which cellular calls are local and do not incur roaming or long distance charges. HOME AREAThe area in which the customer's telephone number is registered determined by the exchange, or first (3) digits of the customer's seven digit (7) telephone number. Thus, if the customer's number is (807) 623-4400, " 623" is the exchange, identifying the customer's Home City. HOME REGISTERED AREAThe area out of which a mobile telephone number is assigned. INDUSTRY CANADAThe federal government agency that regulates radio frequencies in Canada LANDLINETraditional wired telephone service. LCDA flat panel screen used to display numbers and/or characters. Often found on a wireless handset. LEDA light on a handset to alert the user of various conditions. LOCAL CALLINGThe area in which you can place a call without being charged a long distance fee. MSAAn area defined by the U.S. government for use in grouping census data and other statistics. MSAs include a city of at least 50,000 people or an urbanized area of at least 100,000 people and the counties that include these areas. Not all areas of the US are in an MSA. The FCC used these area definitions to license cellular telephone service carries. There are 306 regions of the US designated as MSAs. MILLIWATTOne thousandth of a watt - measure of power for cellular phones. Hand-held portable cellular phones usually have a maximum output power of 600 milliwatts. Fixed cellular phones usually have a maximum output power of 31000 milliwatts (3 watts). MINMobile Identification Number MOBILE TELEPHONE EXCHANGEA switching office interface between the cell sites and the wireline network. It serves as the central co-ordinator and controller, as well as the switching equipment for a cellular telephone system. NAMNumeric Assignment Module. A type of integrated circuit programmed to contain information specific to a cellular phone including its ESN and phone number. PCsUsed to describer a newer class of wireless communications services recently authorized by the FCC. PCs systems use a different radio frequency (the 1.9 GHz band) than cellular phones and generally use all digital technology for transmission and reception. Often referred to as Digital Cellular Service. RADIO FREQUENCY FINGERPRINTINGAn electronic process that identifies each individual wireless handset by examining its unique radio transmission characteristics. Finger printing is used to reduce fraud since the illegal phone cannot duplicate the legal phone's radio-frequency fingerprint. RFA radio signal. ROAMINGThe act of placing or receiving calls in a cellular service area, other than the subscriber's home area. TBayTel Mobility offers roaming capabilities throughout its cellular network across Canada as well as cross-border roaming through agreements with cellular systems in the us and abroad. ROAMER ACCESS NUMBERA number to be dialled prior to dialling a TBayTel Mobility subscriber's phone when the subscriber is roaming. ROAMING AGREEMENTAn agreement among wireless carriers allowing users to use their phone on systems other than their own home systems. Roaming Fee charged for roaming. SERVICE AREAThe geographic area covered by radio coverage from the TBayTel Mobility system. STANDBY TIMEThe time a phone is on but not actively transmitting or receiving a call. TALK TIMEThe time a phone is on and actively transmitting or receiving a call. TDMAA digital communication technology used by some carriers to provide PCs service. Other technologies used are CDMA and GSM. TOLL CHARGECharges for placing long distance calls. TOLL FREE CALLING AREAAn area in which calls can be placed without incurring long distance charges. TRANSCEIVERA radio transmitter and receiver combined to form a single unit. A cellular phone uses a transceiver to send signals to, and receive them from the cell site. WIRELINE COThe "traditional" phone company, or a corporation that owns the local phone company. Wireline companies in Canada include TBayTel, Bell Canada, Manitoba Tel and so on.
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