LONDON-IMS Research said worldwide cell-phone subscribers could reach 650 million by year’s end, up from 500 million at the end of 2003.
As the market matures an increasing number of handsets are being equipped with advanced features that take advantage of the next-generation technologies, the firm said in a new report. The market is seeing the rise of the smart phone in particular. The group said that by 2009, the market will represent 175 million smart phones annually, representing 22 percent of all handsets compared with 4 percent in 2004.
“We predict that data-enabled terminals will continue to grow as cameras, MP3s and other applications are incorporated into these handsets,” said report author Carlos Guzmán. “The cellular industry is moving to a niche market where handsets will focus on a couple of applications instead of offering a handset that can do all the applications. We expect the market in 2005 to offer an increasing selection of handsets introduced as handset manufacturers increase their focus on individual segments of the market.”
