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A new report from ABI Research shows that 3G subscriptions are expected to reach 285 million by the end of this year. Operators’ capital expenditures will also grow, reaching $126.4 billion, while annual 3G-related handset shipments are expected to surpass the 300 million mark.
CDMA2000 is included in the 3G subscription forecasts, although W-CDMA is also beginning to gain traction, according to ABI. The firm believes it will overhaul CDMA2000 by about the year 2012. As many end users replace their GSM handsets, they will default to W-CDMA handsets, creating a boon for manufacturers, according to the firm.
"3G subscriptions, including CDMA2000, are forecast to hit 285 million by the end of 2006," said ABI Research's Asia-Pacific director, Jake Saunders. "Operators' overall capital expenditure will grow for the fourth year to reach $126.4 billion, and annual 3G-related handset shipments should pull past 300 million."
ABI goes on to say that while TD-SCDMA is taking its time reaching commercial acceptance in China, Chinese infrastructure vendors like Datang Mobile are already re-engineering their solutions to offer a hybrid TD-SCDMA/HSDPA solution that maximizes the benefits of both technologies. WiMAX also factors into future market growth.
"The exciting prospect is that national markets could be opening up to alternative access technologies more than ever before," says Saunders. "If the vendors of the new alternative 3G+ solutions can demonstrate that they can operate alongside existing 3G and even 2G infrastructures, the opportunities for new entrants (or even a few industry veterans such as Qualcomm (News - Alert) and Lucent) could suddenly look a lot brighter."
For more information on the range of new technologies and services available in the mobile marketplace, check out the Mobility Summit at Technology Marketing Corporation’s upcoming at INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & Expo, WEST. The show will take place from October 10-13, 2006 in San Diego.
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Laura Stotler writes about IP Communications and related topics for TMCnet. She has covered VoIP and related technologies for seven years, contributing to Internet Telephony magazine and TMCnet, and as a freelance writer. To see more articles, please visit: Laura Stotler’s columnist page.
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