The use of data technology is expected to skyrocket at the dawn of the 21 st Century, according to a new report from Cahners In-Stat Group . The high-tech market research firm predicts that the wireless data market will grow from about 170 million subscribers worldwide in 2000 to greater than 1.3 billion in 2004. As a result, more than 1.5 billion handsets, personal digital assistants and Internet appliances are expected to be equipped with wireless capabilities by the end of 2004. The technology is so new that it is not unusual to have such a growth rate. We estimate that the number of wireless messages sent per month will balloon from 3 billion in December 1999 to 244 billion by December 2004.
Messaging already is very prominent in Europe.
In Europe, there were 9 billion messages in September. One thing that may hinder the development of wireless data in the United States is the success of wireline-based Internet use. Diercks says that in the long run, wireless Internet use will be higher than messaging use by 2004. The Phillips Group offers our customers in-depth research reports, each delving into the hot topics faced by the wireless, broadband, wholesale communications service, Internet and optical industries. Wireless carriers now are required to figure out how they're going to incorporate GPS technology into their wireless phones this fall - a mandate that ultimately could cost customers, and one that carriers might try to postpone.