Something for Telus to Think About...

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GSM the most popular in America

3G Americas has reported that in the first quarter of 2004, GSM remains by far
the number one mobile technology chosen by new customers in North America, Latin
America, and the Caribbean. There were nearly 10.5 million new GSM customers
added in the Americas in the first quarter 2004: in the United States and
Canada, there were nearly 4.8 million new GSM customers; and in Latin America
and the Caribbean, GSM was chosen by nearly 5.7 million new customers.
Information is based on the EMC World Cellular Database.

Globally, GSM added 215.3 million new customers from March 2003 to March 2004,
more than the total customer base of any other wireless technology in the world
today. In the first quarter of 2004, new GSM customers throughout the world
totaled nearly 55 million.

GSM continues its robust growth year-over-year, adding nearly 35 million
customers in the Americas for an annual gain of 118% from March 2003 to March
2004. This growth rate builds on the momentum of GSM in the Americas, which had
recorded a 100% gain from December 2002 to December 2003. According to data from
EMC, GSM annual percentage growth is five times that of any other wireless
technology in the Americas.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, GSM growth continues at a phenomenal pace of
nearly 190% during this one-year period ended March 2004. Erasmo Rojas, Director
of Latin America and Caribbean for 3G Americas noted that the decisions in favor
of GSM in the Latin American key markets are indicative of the regional trend.
Rojas stated, "Countries that are rapidly expanding their GSM customer base
include Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela, and Jamaica. The numbers are
remarkable." In Mexico, GSM grew by nearly 710% annually (through March 2004)
adding 5.9 million new customers and in Brazil, GSM showed more than 300% annual
growth in the same time period, adding 6.8 million new customers compared to
less than half that amount of new CDMA customers (3.3 million). Chile remains a
strong GSM market adding more than one million new customers in the year ending
March 2004. Colombia only began offering GSM in the past year and now reports
1.7 million customers in March 2004. Rojas continued, "We are seeing newly
licensed operators, as well as a large number of both TDMA and CDMA operators,
choose GSM for their next generation technology migration strategy."

GSM in the U.S. and Canada showed outstanding results for the GSM operators with
more than an 82% annual growth during the one year ending March 2004.

"GSM continues to be the fastest growing wireless technology in the Americas,"
stated Chris Pearson, President of 3G Americas. "The industry is seeing global
commercial deployments of EDGE technology, the fastest nationwide wireless data
service available now to more than 220 million people in the U.S. and launched
by seventeen operators worldwide. Globally, there are 94 operators in 58
countries committed to deploying EDGE who represent more than a quarter of a
billion customers in their subscriber base."

http://www.cellular-news.com/story/11196.shtml
 
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twtwwtin wrote:
> America, and the Caribbean. There were nearly 10.5 million new GSM customers
> added in the Americas in the first quarter 2004: in the United States and
> Canada, there were nearly 4.8 million new GSM customers;

While the article is great news, one must temper this with the fact that both
Rogers and AT&T and I think Cingular are convertiong old TDMA customers to
GSM.

In north america, the statistic that would be nice to have is whether CDMA
customers are migrating to GSM networks.

Since TDMA is dead, I think tha the current migration of TDMA customers to GSM
is a one shot deal that won't last for an eternity.

However, in terms of sheer numbers, the good news is that GSM has become the
clear winner even in the USA where it had been shunned by the USA government
prefering to help the proprietary CDMA technology.


The next step in my opinion is mass arrival of GSM handsets to north america
(models used to be quite limited due to low user numbers), and this is what
may spell the end of CDMA if the CDMA networks can't attract all the neat handsets.