A report released by Jupiter Research indicates that the adoption of LTE on an extremely fast climb – but only in limited markets. LTE subscriber levels should near a half billion by 2016, but this will reach only 6% of the global mobile users. Europe dominates the roll-out of the technology, though 216 operators have committed to the switch.
In the U.S., the prospect of Ethernet-like speed on a mobile phone still hasn’t clicked with consumers, who may have a hard time understanding the value until a killer application is developed.
That’s were my major forecast seems to have failed. I thought that LTE would rapidly spread in the U.S. as a challenge to cable. Cable companies deliver both television and Internet – both of which could beam into the digitally challenged hinterlands of America via LTE Advanced. But this gigabit version of LTE has yet to take to the air.
But I shouldn’t be so impatient. The technology has only been available for a few months. I’m still convinced, though, that it’s eventual implementation will open a new age of mobile computing.
Comments
Add Your Comment