Alltel announced that it has chosen LTE as its 4G network technology. The company said, however, that it will be at least three to five years before the LTE network is built out and operational. This is significant, because Alltel–a CDMA carrier–is following Verizon’s footsteps by switching networking technologies to match what will likely be the 4G standard worldwide. LTE is based on current GSM standards. It means that Alltel, AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless will all use similar technology for their next-generation networks. So far, Sprint has said it is sticking with WiMax as its 4G technology of choice. No one has sided with Qualcomm-developed UMB, which is the 4G evolutionary path of CDMA technology.