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GSM celebrates first billion users
February 23, 2004
Carl-Henric Svanberg, President and CEO of Ericsson, says: "Signing 1 billion users shows beyond question that GSM delivers services what consumers want across the globe. We will continue to develop easy-to-use services and solutions to bring mobile communication to even more people in the future."
Ericsson has a lot to celebrate. With 40 percent of the GSM market, the company has been a key player in one of the most fundamental revolutions in global communications, making the world wireless. GSM is by far the dominant mobile technology on the globe today with 72 percent market share. Industry analysts predict that another billion users will be connected by 2008.
Communicate - anytime, anywhere
Before the arrival of GSM, being able to communicate whenever you wanted, wherever you were, was nothing more than a fanciful notion. The mobile phone had arrived but it was a heavy and awkward device that worked only in certain cities and countries. GSM was designed to deliver a mobile phone service across borders. Today, it is running in more than 200 countries with more than 600 operators using the system.
And the GSM revolution is not over yet.
The technology is also improving continuously in terms of capacity and quality. With so many GSM manufacturers and operators, the cumulative R&D investment is unrivalled.
Serving the next billion users
Ericsson has a long tradition of innovation based on the achievements from its strong R&D commitment. The range of mobile multimedia and data services on offer to GSM users just keeps growing. And Ericsson has already developed solutions to serve the next billion users through the Ericsson Expander package of solutions.
Rob Conway, CEO of the GSM Association, says: "GSM was born out of a revolutionary vision that mobile phones should keep customers connected anytime, anywhere, even when crossing borders.
"Delivering that vision demanded a truly open standard and interoperability between all networks, handsets and systems. This global opportunity for suppliers worldwide promoted innovation, competition, economies of scale and choice, making the technology ever more affordable and attractive."
The next billion GSM customers will be a central theme at this week's 3GSM World Congress in Cannes.
