TIA Reports Record Wireless Telecom Growth

Wireless use is expected to spread to 270 million people in the United States, or 87 percent of the country's population, by 2010, according to the latest study by the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA). The TIA's 2007 Telecommunications Market Review and Forecast, a massive 370-page volume, provides an overview of the entire telecommunications industry as well as detailed sections on the wireless, landline, equipment, and international markets. The expected growth is fueled by a consumer desire for broadband applications, according to TIA President Grant E. Seiffert, "Consumer demand for wireless services is unprecedented throughout the world, and carriers as well as manufacturers are scrambling to satisfy the marketplace needs. Wireless, broadband, and television are becoming key elements of a bundled landline package that we predict 77 percent of residential customers will take by 2010, up from 28 percent in 2006." The report notes that the market for transport services, handsets, capital expenditures, test, and infrastructure equipment totaled $190 billion in 2006 and is expected to reach $267 billion in 2010. The report is available in print or CD-ROM form.

TIA (www.tiaonline.org)