# Beacon Channel
Each [[NB - Node Base-station]] regularly broadcasts a signal that indicates:
- its presence
- the characteristics of the network (e.g., operator)
[[2G - Digital cellular telephony|2G]]/[[GSM - Global System for Mobile communication]]/[[GSM BCCH - GSM Broadcast Control Channel]]
[[3G - High-speed digital cellular telephony|3G]]/[[UMTS - Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service]]/[[UMTS BCCH - UMTS Broadcast Control Channel]]
[[4G - IP-based voice, data and multimedia telephony]]/[[LTE - Long Term Evolution]]/[[BCH - Broadcast Channel]]