On the backhaul efficiency of 3G CDMA radio access network

The recurring operating costs of backhaul links are of key concern to cellular service providers. Backhaul are the links (or trunks) that connect base stations to the base station controller (BSC) in the central office. One of the driving forces to migrate from 2G to 3G RAN (radio access networks) is to maximize the backhaul efficiency by adopting packet-switched technology. The maximum number of calls a backhaul link can support is called the backhaul efficiency. Two major technologies, ATM (specifically, AAL2) and IP, are the main streams offered in 3G. We compare the backhaul efficiency of these two technologies with 2G circuit-switched backhaul efficiency. QoS associated with the 3G AAL2/IP backhaul is also considered.