LTE subscriptions are now growing faster than any other kind of mobile connectivity, new figures from the Global mobile Suppliers Association has claimed.
Net additions to LTE subscriptions grew 21 percent faster than those of 3G/WCDMA-HSPA during the third and fourth quarters of last year, the trade body said.
By the end of 2014, there were 497 million LTE subscriptions globally, representing growth of 140 percent (or 290 million connections) during last year.
Europe saw its share of the LTE market grow by 1.7 percentage points to 16 percent. However, Asia Pacific increased its share to 47 percent, up from 40 percent in June 2014. North America saw its share shrink from 42.3 percent of all connections to 33 percent by year end.
Alan Hadden, Vice President of Research, GSA said: “LTE subscriptions grew by 115 million in Q4, over 36 percent higher than 3G/WCDMA-HSPA connections. GSM subscriptions fell by 78.5 million in the same period. We are confident that LTE growth will continue to lead all other mobile systems.”
The association said there will be more than 450 commercially launched LTE networks by the end of this year, up from 364 at the end of 2014.
Joe Barrett, President of GSA, said: “LTE has quickly built a huge momentum across the world with a rapidly expanding footprint. LTE net subscription additions in Q4 2014 were 45 percent higher than in the previous quarter.”
A report released this week by research firm tEfficient revealed Finland was the top country in the world for mobile data usage, thanks to its speedy adoption of LTE. The Nordic country’s DNA saw the largest average intake, with customers consuming 3.5GB of data per month.
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