GENEVA-Mobile-phone subscribers around the globe totaled nearly 1.5 billion by the middle of this year. The number of subscribers has doubled since 2000, according to new numbers from the International Telecommunication Union.
According to international reports, the ITU said the growth in mobile-phone subscribers outpaced that for fixed lines as well as that of Internet users. The report said the largest gains in the number of subscribers occurred in developing countries, such as China, India and Russia.
The ITU said the value of the global wireless industry reached $414 billion in revenues in 2003, 10 times that of the amount reported in 1993.
In a separate report, the U.S. Census Bureau said the number of mobile-phone users in the United States reached 159 million in 2003, up from 34 million in 1995. The report said the average mobile-phone call in 2003 lasted 2.87 minutes and the average monthly bill was $49.91.
