HAPPY NEW YEAR and therefore it is an appropriate to take a quick look at one of the “things” that might be affecting us sooner than we might want.
A recent report indicated that Smartphone users generate two thirds of total mobile cellular traffic worldwide. Driving this increase in traffic is that fact that smartphones have become mobile hubs for users, who are streaming video, running location-based applications, and transmitting data and files. I know that my children, both iPhone users (I have a Blackberry though do not use it to surf – what a luddite) do everything on their phones including showing me the latest movie trailers, GPS directions, and all the things that good old Dad does on his computer. This perhaps explains the large traffic disparity between Smartphone and non-Smartphone and why this gap is most pronounced in North America where 86% of mobile data traffic is currently generated by Smartphone users, notably those using an iPhone or high-end Android devices.
As an indication the market for these devices is growing, Samsung has announced it plans to sell more than 40 million smartphones worldwide in 2011, twice the company’s estimate for 2010.
When you add this all together is it any wonder mobile phone traffic is expected to increase 700% in next few years? Go to http://www.connectedworldmag.com/latestNews.aspx?id=NEWS101108071626557&utm_source=Connected+World+Weekly%3A+11-12-2010&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Connected+World+Weekly%3A+11-12-2010 for more information.
I guess I will remain an ‘old fogey’ for at least until the summer of 2012 when my contract renews – but I can use my phone for just what the name implies, check e-mails, BBM, text and still do my little bit to load up the data pipes until then.
Off to IFPAC http://www.ifpacpat.org/ in Baltimore next week to refresh my process analyser roots and will present a couple papers – one as part of Wednesday afternoon’s Data Communications track so watch for a report on that event next week.
