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In-Stat Reports Global Wireless Handset Market Grows 23% in 2006 and Will Reach $500 Billion By 2009

Posted on: Wednesday, 17 May 2006, 12:02 CDT

The market for wireless handsets was $110 billion in 2005. In-Stat (http://www.in-stat.com) predicts that it will grow 23%, to exceed $136 billion in 2006. It will continue to grow but at a slower rate, according to the high-tech market research firm, exceeding $250 billion in 2011. To put this in perspective, if wireless handsets were a sovereign country, it would be the 53rd largest economy, right behind Ireland, but growing more than twice as fast as China.

This growth is not preordained. According to an In-Stat study, it depends upon phone manufacturers continuing to add features that consumers value and that the rest of the industry can support. The greatest challenge is to just add the features different customers want without adding unneeded cost or complexity from unneeded or unwanted features. The study includes end-user survey results that explore current customer attitudes as well as how it corresponds to their past buying behavior.

The goal for wireless phone manufacturers is to make customers forget they ever tolerated a phone without the new innovations. This has happened as the mobile phone has advanced dramatically in the past several years. According to the In-Stat survey, very few US users, less than 5%, do not use at least one of the technological innovations introduced over this period. Consumers seem ready to embrace other new features, including location-based services and Bluetooth connectivity, but only a narrow segment have interest in multimedia features and camera phone use will see a decline.

"Big trends over the next five years include adoption of wireless phones as a mobile wallet, that and more users will carry multiple devices," says Bill Hughes, In-Stat analyst. "The primary changes in phones over the next five years are that they will become more capable, incorporate beefier security, and be more targeted as organizations have greater involvement in the wireless service decisions of their employees. Perhaps more importantly, they will help us be safer."

Recent research by In-Stat found the following:

-- Worldwide sales of mobile phones will rise from 935 million units in 2006 to more than double that in 2011.

-- SmartPhone sales will surpass 480 million units by 2011.

-- Motorola was by far the most popular phone brand among survey respondents who obtained their phone through work.

The research, "The Big Trends for Cell Phones, 2006-2011" (#IN0602922WH), covers the worldwide mobile phone market. It anticipates future developments for wireless phones over the next five years, looking at the entire wireless phone value chain, which consists of phone manufacturers, supplier ecosystem, distributors, carriers, and in many cases, the organization to which many customers belong. It includes unit and revenue forecasts for different types of phones through 2011.

For more information on this research, please visit: http://www.instat.com/catalog/Wcatalogue.asp?id=66 or contact Tina Sheltra at 480-609-4531 or tina.sheltra@reedbusiness.com. The price is $3495 (US).

About In-Stat

Technology vendors, service providers, technology professionals and market specialists, worldwide, rely on In-Stat's experienced staff and in-depth research to support critical business, product and technology decisions. In-Stat's insights are derived from both a deep technology understanding and comprehensive research, which examines each segment of the value chain for each market. Regular and ongoing end-user demand and primary research surveys underpin much of the analysis, enabling In-Stat to provide incisive market knowledge and guidance on future market opportunities.

In-Stat is a strategic segment of the $9 billion Reed Elsevier global information network, with access to an expansive worldwide electronic network, extensive technology databases and well-informed personnel. As a member of Reed Business Information, In-Stat is a division of the largest business-to-business publisher in the U.S.

Source: Business Wire

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