14 DAY TRIAL // Though wireless connectivity was not exactly widespread several years back, this means of communication has become so common that, according to iSupply, 5 billion people will have subscribed to such services by the end of September.
Even though the penetration of wireless services varies from region to region, it seems that a fairly large chunk of the world's population benefits from wireless services.
The low-end regions are Africa and the Middle East, where penetration is of about 50%, not bad but not on par with the one in Western Europe.
Basically, in Western Europe there are more wireless subscriptions than there are citizens, as odd as it may sound.
In other words, penetration in that region is of an astounding 157.6%, as Europeans often have multiple phones and subscriptions, so that they may remain connected even while traveling across nations.
The global installed base of wireless devices will reach 4.9 billion by the end of the year, but subscriptions are expected to meet 5 billion this month.
“If the importance of an event can be measured by the number of people it affects, then the proliferation of wireless communications stands out as one of the most significant phenomena in the history of technology,” said Dr. Jagdish Rebello, senior director and principal analyst for wireless research at iSuppli.
“Wireless communication now has spread to every nation, every age and every income level, becoming a basic staple like food, clothing and shelter,” Rebello added.
“Wireless now represents the biggest stage that any technology market has ever played on, offering unlimited opportunities for members of the mobile communications supply chain,” the senior director went on to saying.
“Because of the prevalence of mobile communications, the focus of the global technology supply chain has shifted away from the slower-growing computer market toward fast-expanding wireless-oriented platforms,” Rebello said.
“The vast size of the installed base means wireless delivers greater opportunities for content and service developers to reach a large portion of the population. Furthermore, the evolution of mobile handsets into smart phones is leading to the deployment of more value-added services, software and components.”