Categories
Close
Menu
Menu
Close
Search
Search

Featured Articles

News

90% of the world's population now has access to a mobile network

Mark

Share:

Print

Rate article:

No rating
Rate this article:
No rating

The International Telecommunication Union, which looks after information and communication technology issues for the United Nations, has calculated that 90% of the world population has access to mobile networks. It's one of the figures from the agency's The World in 2010 report.

ITU data also shows that, by the end of this year, there'll be 3.8 billion mobile subscriptions in the developing world. The global total is expected to be 5.3 billion. Text messaging has trebled in the last three years, with a total of 6.1 trillion SMS messages expected in 2010 – the equivalent of almost 200,000 per second.

Sami Al Basheer, Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau, said "Mobile phone penetration in developing countries now stands at 68% — higher than any other technology before. These countries have been innovative in adapting mobile technology to their particular needs and will be able to draw even greater benefits from broadband once adequate and affordable access is available."

In addition, the number of mobile and fixed-line internet users is expected to exceed 2 billion worldwide this year, with almost 1.6 billion going online at home. By the end of 2010, 71% of the population in developed countries will be online, compared to 21% of the population in developing countries.

[PDF report]

Comments

Collapse Expand Comments (0)
You don't have permission to post comments.

Opinion Articles

ExclusiveLast week at The Fonecast: 29th October 2012

Mark Bridge writes:

In many ways it’s been a week of big news without big surprises. Apple announced the much-rumoured iPad mini, which is just like an iPad but smaller. It also introduced a fourth-generation update to its larger iPad, promising more speed and more 4G connectivity.

ExclusiveLast week at The Fonecast: 15th October 2012

Mark Bridge writes:

Can you trust a Chinese company to build a telecoms network?  Apparently not, according to the US House of Representatives. The “Investigative Report on the U.S. National Security Issues Posed by Chinese Telecommunications Companies Huawei and ZTE” wasn’t at all impressed with the two companies, although most of the complaints appeared to be about a lack of cooperation rather than hard evidence. I wonder if any mysterious agents are planning to visit the new Huawei UK HQ before next year’s official opening?

ExclusiveCongressional warning on Chinese telecoms could prompt retaliation

William Gallo of voanews.com writes:

Analysts say this week's U.S. congressional report that called two Chinese telecoms a threat to national security is likely to prompt China to retaliate against U.S. businesses.

The House Intelligence Committee report warned U.S. companies against doing business with China's largest phone equipment companies, Huawei and ZTE.

ExclusiveKenya to pull plug on counterfeit mobile phones

Gabe Joselow of voanews.com writes:

Mobile phone subscribers in Kenya may wake up Monday morning to find their phones no longer work, as the nation's telecom companies enact a nation-wide switch-off of all counterfeit devices. Retailers and customers have mixed reactions to the plan, which could affect up to three million mobile phones.

RSS
First3031323335373839Last

Recent Podcasts

ExclusivePodcast from Mobile World Congress 2015

Mark Bridge learns about the mobile technology trends at Mobile World Congress 2015 by chatting to James Rosewell of 51Degrees, Dr Kevin Curran from the IEEE and Chris Millington of Doro.

They talk about wearable devices, wireless charging, mobile operating systems and much more... including some of their favourite products from the exhibition.

ExclusiveLooking back at February: from security scares to multiple MVNOs

We're taking a look back at the biggest mobile industry news stories from February 2015, including allegations that the UK's security service tried to breach SIM card security by hacking into one of the world's biggest SIM producers.

We also talk about the planned BT and EE merger, the creation of two new UK virtual networks, some acquisitions in the mobile payment arena and a new Ubuntu smartphone.

ExclusiveA month of mobile: O2 counts on 3, Microsoft counts to 10 and Apple counts its profits

We're back with a month of mobile industry news, including takeover talks and takeover rumours. O2 and Three are said to be discussing a merger... but is there any truth in the suggestions that BlackBerry could be up for grabs?

We also discuss Apple's record-breaking quarterly figures, the highlights of CES and the launch of Microsoft Windows 10, as well as saying farewell to the current version of Google Glass.

RSS
12345678910Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Archive Calendar

«June 2026»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
25262728293031
1234567
891011121314
15161718192021
22232425262728
293012345

Archive