engine - 1:16 pm on Jan 11, 2011 (gmt 0)

Mobile Broadband Use Expected to Reach 1 Billion Users in 2011 [reuters.com]

Mobile broadband subscriptions are on track to surpass 1 billion in 2011 only months after reaching half a billion, Ericsson said on Tuesday, highlighting a key growth driver for the telecom sector. "During the course of 2010, a significant milestone in terms of mobile broadband subscriptions was reached as their number surpassed the half-a-billion mark globally," Ericsson, the world's biggest mobile network gear maker, said in a statement. "Ericsson estimates that this number will double before 2011 ends."

Asia Pacific is expected to account for the greatest number of subscriptions, around 400 million, followed by North America and western Europe with more than 200 million each, Ericsson said.