East European mobile expense on the rise

According to dmeurope.com, expenses on mobile services in Central and Eastern Europe rose 13.5 per cent in 2005 to €12.6bn and are expected to rise 9.5 per cent more this year. Subscriptions rose 15.7 per cent across the region, bringing total mobile reception to 78 per cent.

As for the total subscriptions in 2005, the region was led by Poland with more than double the number found in second-ranked Romania, while Czech Republic ranked third. These three countries together represented over 61 per cent of activated mobile subscriptions.

When looking at countries by average revenue per user (ARPU), the rankings look substantially different. In 2005, Latvians had the lead, generating 25 per cent more revenue per person than Hungarians, placed second, and a third more than Estonians, who ranked third. Bulgaria, Poland and Romania spent the least. According to IDC, ARPU is falling as the number of low-spending consumers purchasing mobiles is rising in the region.