Mobile Subscribers to Continue Utilizing a Potpourri of Air Interfaces

Mobile operators and vendors will benefit throughout the decade no matter if they are pursuing low-end or high-end mobile strategies, according to a new Visant Strategies study. The worldwide mobile subscriber base will continue to grow through 2010 as wireless networks globally evolve into a number of long-envisioned air-interface roadmaps, the study finds.

By 2010 there will be over 2.3 billion individual wireless subscribers worldwide, according to the report with 1.1 billion of those subscribers using 3G services.

"What we are seeing today is not only the growth and use of high-speed mobile networks, but also continued significant growth in second-tier and third-tier wireless markets," said study author Larry Swasey. "In the top markets 3G has been implemented, viable high-speed handsets are being shipped in quantities and users are signing up for high-speed data services. In other areas success is due to simple voice and data strategies where mobile is being used instead of implementing a wireless local loop."

WCDMA, HSDPA and EDGE systems each will garner hundreds of million of subscribers by 2010, according to the study, while CDMA systems will also hold hundreds of millions of subscribers globally. GSM/GPRS subscribers will still number over a billion in 2010, the study finds.

"While WCDMA, HSDPA, EDGE and CDMA will satisfy high-speed voice, data and content needs as well as capacity wants, there will still be a very large use of GSM/GPRS as operators in many markets look to meet simpler voice and data needs," Swasey said. Emerging handset initiatives will play a pivotal role in these same areas, providing access to subscribers of all income levels."

Posted to the site on 28th September 2005