Ericsson and 3 Scandinavia have signed a contract to upgrade the operator’s HSPA network to 21 Mbps downlink speeds. This will raise mobile broadband speeds in Scandinavia to a new level by dramatically improving quality and capacity. The upgrade will give 3’s customers improved access to mobile broadband services, including Internet and downloading of music and video. Peder Ramel, CEO of 3 Scandinavia says: “We were the first to launch Turbo 3G in the Nordic region and now we are proud to be one of the first operators in the world to offer a speed of 21Mbps. Ericsson’s leading technology will help us boost competitiveness and reach our goal of bringing high-quality communications to our customers.
Informa Telecoms & Media reveals that worldwide mobile penetration will hit 50 per cent – or around 3.3 billion subscriptions – on Thursday, just over 26 years since the first cellular network was launched. Since its birth in 1981, when the first mobile telephony network was switched on in Scandinavia, the mobile phone has become one of the world’s great success stories. As of the end of September there were operational networks in 224 countries around the globe, a figure that has increased from 192 in 1997 and 35 in 1987. Informa estimates that mobile networks covered 90 per cent of the global population by mid-2007.