OYSTER BAY, N.Y.-According to a new study from Allied Business Intelligence Inc., a technology research company, the emergence of third-generation technology will lead to a boom in the wireless data market.
The report, “3G Wireless: Global Data & Voice Networking Strategies-WAP, GPRS, 1XRTT, EDGE and Internet Access,” predicts direct wireless Internet access will be available to more than 100 million wireless users this year.
By 2005, the report predicts there will be more than 240 million data users, an increase from 26 million this year.
“With [Global Packet Radio Service] going up in much of Western Europe and truncated access services, such as those based on [Wireless Application Protocol], gaining considerable momentum worldwide, there is a data market finally at hand which will prove valuable to users and profitable to suppliers,” said Larry Swasey, vice president of communications research at ABI. “As 3G radio channel element upgrades take place and data strategies are placed into mobile wireless networks, the handset will become a much more valuable tool to both the operator and the user.”
The report noted the Asia-Pacific region is currently providing a good snapshot of the competitiveness in the data market, with Japanese operator NTT DoCoMo seeing its iMode offering quickly attracting millions of users. The acceptance of this service has prompted other carriers, including DDI and IDO, to launch their own 64 kbps Code Division Multiple Access-based data services. This region is predicted to account for more than one-third of data users in 2000, and one-fourth by 2004.
Western Europe will see usage increase, due to Global System for Mobile communications offerings in the area and high usage rate of wireless phones, from one-tenth of the market this year to one-third in 2004.
North and South America are expected to see usage rise after 2002 when 1XRTT and EDGE strategies will begin to be implemented by CDMA and Time Division Multiple Access carriers. The report predicts the Americas to account for nearly 40 percent of the data market by 2005.
