Every year, more mobile subscribers are trading in their basic 2G handsets for iPhones, BlackBerries and, now, Google (News - Alert) Android-infused smartphones.
And by 2013, In-Stat predicts that more than 60 percent of all the Internet-connected mobile devices sold will be through carrier channels.
The organization’s latest study, “Mobile Graphics & Multimedia Review,” reveals that carriers are becoming a significant channel for all Internet-connected mobile devices, including netbooks and mobile PCs. For carriers, the benefits include increased revenue potential from smartphone-based services.
As services are bundled for multiple devices and service prices decrease due to increased bandwidth and competition, the number of devices sold through the carriers will continue to increase, too.
“In the U.S., carriers are charging up to $60 per month for a two-year contract with the subsidized purchase of a netbook,” said In-Stat (News - Alert) analyst Jim McGregor. “While the subsidy costs the carrier $50-$100, it generates $1,440 or more in service fees over the life of the contract.”
Carriers in the EU and Asia are also offering netbooks with a data contract, but typically at lower prices than in the United States, said In-Stat. As a result of the recent success of selling netbooks, carriers are now venturing into offering notebook PCs, while carriers in Asia have been offering MIDs and UMPCs for some time.
In-Stat projects that the total available market for Internet-connected devices will grow at a 22.3 percent compound annual growth rate through 2013. By then, 78 percent of Internet-connected devices will be using processors with integrated multimedia acceleration, including 85 percent of mobile PCs. What’s more: In-Stat projects that nearly 31 percent of notebooks will be sold through carriers in 2013.
Such growth in the mobile market is being driven by four key factors: richer content, network access for communications and content, increased bandwidth to enable this access and new technologies.
The full report is available for purchase online.
Marisa Torrieri is a TMCnet Web editor, covering IP hardware and mobility, including IP phones, smartphones, fixed-mobile convergence and satellite technology. She also compiles and regularly contributes to TMCnet's gadgets and satellite e-Newsletters. To read more of Marisa's articles, please visit her columnist page.
Edited by Marisa Torrieri