Business | Technology
Takers for mobile net access surge
The number of mobile broadband connections globally has risen tenfold in the past year, lending credence to suggestions the industry is coming of age.
- By Philip Stafford, Financial Times
- Published: 23:38 April 8, 2008
London: The number of mobile broadband connections globally has risen tenfold in the past year, lending credence to suggestions the industry is coming of age.
The GSM Association, the global trade body for mobile phone operators, has announced the 32-millionth mobile broadband connection, up from three million at the end of March 2007.
It also found that the number of operators offering high-speed internet access through mobile networks had soared 44 per cent in the past 10 months.
The GSMA said operators in Asia, Australia, Europe and North America were all reporting an increase in the uptake of high-speed packet access handsets, which give users access to websites at speeds ranging from 1.8 megabits per second to 7.2mbps.
It found that of 166 global commercial HSPA deployments, 100 offer speeds of 3.6mbps or above, while of the 27 countries in the European Union, 24 have commercial HSPA deployments.
The number of networks offering commercial mobile broadband services has risen sharply in the past year.
Broadband on mobile phones is available in 73 countries from 166 operators, up from 96 networks commercially deployed in three countries.
More from Technology
More from Business
Business Editor's choice
-
Do unemployment figures flatter to deceive?
Jobseekers and recruiters give out mixed signals ranging from optimism to downright despair even as official data show recovery
-
Banks can increase their share
Longer opening hours, more locations outside cities and lower charges can help
-
Geepas idea blossomed in Dubai
The journey led from a small shop in Bahrain to a $1.27b company in the UAE
