Wireless personal communications services: a New Zealand perspective

Personal communications services (PCS) are anticipated to herald a new era in global telecommunications. In this article, a perspective of some experiences obtained in New Zealand is presented. The topics discussed include: operational considerations, planning aspects, reliability, propagation and environmental aspects. Present-day telecommunications services have been influenced by numerous commercial, regulatory, demographic, and geographic factors peculiar to New Zealand. However, many of the lessons learned have direct relevance to the global telecommunications scene. In particular, contributions already made by New Zealand telecommunications research groups have gained worldwide recognition. The activities of one such group-the Radio Systems Group at the University of Auckland-are also discussed.