3.5G drives mobile broadband growth
January 11, 2008
3.5G is driving mobile broadband growth around the globe, with a rapid increase in the number of commercial HSDPA (high-speed downlink packet access) networks being rolled out. The number of commercial HSDPA networks launched worldwide grew by 69 per cent last year, according to a survey by the Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) — a GSM/3G supplier association.
There are now 166 commercial HSDPA networks in 75 countries and a further 38 networks are committed to rollouts, which will bump the total to 204 HSDPA networks in 89 countries, said the GSA. Commercial HSDPA networks are widely available in Western Europe (61 networks), Asia Pacific (35), Eastern Europe (34), the Middle East and Africa (20) and the Americas and the Caribbean (16).