The number of mobile broadband subscribers using 3G HSPA has increased by 850% worldwide in the past year, according to the GSM Association. But carriers are also running the risk of becoming a victim of their own success, according to some analysts.
HSPA (High-Speed Packet Access) is an advanced form of 3G deployed by cellular operators that use GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) technology. Worldwide, GSM is the most widely-used cellular technology; it is used by AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile in the U.S. HSPA currently offers speeds ranging from 1.8 Mbps to 7.2 Mbps.
There are now more than 32 million HSPA connections worldwide, compared with 3 million a year ago, according to the GSM Associaton.
Read the full report in ‘Computer World’ here.
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Most consumers overlook the small surcharges on their telephone bills. Usually no more than a few dollars per month, these support a variety of programs, including those that ensure affordable telephone service for low-income and disabled customers. But the high-cost subsidies are the most expensive and possibly the least regulated.
In California for example, the two biggest phone companies, AT&T Inc. and Verizon California, received $1.2 billion in subsidies over the past three years as compensation for serving more than 7,600 designated high-cost areas. That list has remained static for years and is based on the 1990 census.
The state’s 25 million cellular subscribers contributed 60 percent of those payments, a proportion that is likely to increase given the growing number of consumers relying exclusively on wireless…
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