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The report, Global Cellular Data Forecasts (2004 - 2009), suggests that global revenue from mobile data services will more than triple over the next five years, with text messaging via SMS expected to represent 26 percent of the projected total in 2009.

Strategy Analytics foresees the application continuing to be an especially strong revenue generator in Europe, China and the Philippines, but the company does suggest that its overall contribution to global revenue will fall in relation to that of instant messaging (IM) and multimedia messaging services (MMS).

The latter are expected to grow substantially from 2006, as users begin to take advantage of faster data streams with camera-equipped phones that offer better imaging capabilities. Strategy Analytics expects that in 2009 mobile photo, video and instant messaging services will bring in USD 12.6 billion, 8.4 billion and 4.7 billion respectively.

In terms of personalization services, such as ringtones and downloadable games, the report suggests that growth is slowing down in certain markets due to saturation, price pressures and the availability of alternatives. However, Strategy Analytics believes that the advent of ringback tones will at least temporarily prevent a complete slump in demand, and that personalization services will generate global revenue of USD 15.6 billion during 2009.

Other data revenue drivers include entertainment services related to music, media, games and more, which are expected to generate almost USD 52 billion in 2009. And information services, such as those providing leisure, travel, directory and financial details, are predicted to bring in USD 24 billion five years from now.

Although the report primarily focuses on future revenues, it also provides some insight into the current period of growth in mobile data services, which Strategy Analytics attributes to operator strategies established over the past two years. These strategies focused on bringing users cost-effective, fast and reliable data services as well as better-equipped handsets, while backing up their offerings with strong marketing campaigns.

Many operators have in fact created brands through which they sell non-voice services to subscribers, as well as to other operators. These brands include M-Mode from US AT&T Wireless, Get It Now from Verizon, i-mode from NTT DoCoMo, T-Zones from T-Mobile and Vodafone live! from Vodafone. Services under these brands include SMS, Instant Messaging, chatrooms, ringtones, picture and video messaging, media storage facilities, competitions, games and music, as well as news, weather and travel information.

The Strategy Analytics report also cites positive growth in the WCDMA market during 2004, with NTT DoCoMo and Hutchison both mentioned as operators enjoying burgeoning numbers of 3G customers. During the first quarter of 2004 NTT DoCoMo saw its WCDMA subscriber base grow by almost 40 percent to 3.05 million, and Hutchison added almost 700,000 users of 3G services during the second quarter. Strategy Analytics predicted that there would be at total of 6.8 million WCDMA subscribers around the world by mid-2004.