Last week it was announced that in the US, as of February, the iPhone exclusivity deal with network provider AT&T will end and the iPhone will be made available through Verizon, the second largest American network.
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As the third generation of wireless mobile networks reaches the end of its development and the next generation looms on the horizon, the term 4G is being increasing thrown around as the latest buzz work for the mobile industry.

Technically speaking, no network or device commercially available as of writing can truly be described as 4G. The radio-communication division of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defines 4G, or IMT-Advanced, compliant technology as being capable, among other key features, of data rates in excess of “100 Mbit/s for high and 1 Gbit/s for low mobility” systems. However, with the progress of the industry as it is, the strict definition of the term seems to be in danger of irrelevance.
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Battles between standards can be costly, and sometimes inefficient. Some commentators quickly jump to the normative conclusion that it should be a policy priority to strive for conformity and to settle these “wars” swiftly and decisively.

This logic has weak empirical and theoretical underpinnings, as numerous examples from USB/Firewire to WCDMA/CDMA2000 show. It is by no means evident that economic efficiency and long-term growth would increase from less, rather than more, competition between systems.
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