GSM users now half a billion strong

GSM users now half a billion strong The number of GSM users in the world has now reached the half billion mark, according to industry bodies and research organizations - and approximately forty percent of them are connected over a network supplied by Ericsson, the world's leading supplier of 2G, 2.5G and 3G networks. Using the world's most widely deployed mobile standard, GSM users can roam to more than 168 countries, taking their voice and data services with them. Emerging as the mainstream standard globally, GSM/GPRS provides a strong foundation for the 3G mobile Internet services to be delivered by EDGE and WCDMA. "The extraordinary success story of GSM, developed as an open standard, has driven a global, multi-vendor market for infrastructure, terminals and applications development," said Mats Dahlin, head of Division Mobile Systems at Ericsson. "That means rapid and cost-effective deployment with economies of scale for operators and a wide range of services and global roaming for the consumer." Customers in 139 networks in 79 countries rely on GSM from Ericsson for their voice, SMS and other mobile services. To date, nearly 70 leading operators have selected Ericsson to deliver their GPRS packet switching solutions, and Ericsson has been named as a supplier in 30 WCDMA commercial agreements to date, more than any other vendor. Commenting on the 500 million user milestone, Scott Fox, Chairman of the GSM Association, the wireless industry representative body for GSM operators, said, "The GSM approach - of operators, manufacturers and industry organizations working together - is the approach that delivers on the things users care about." "GSM is the most successful mobile platform ever and with its global roaming capabilities and open structure is the optimum platform from which to build future mobile strategies," stated Alan Hadden, president of the Global mobile Suppliers Association, the industry representative body for GSM and 3G vendors. Ericsson is shaping the future of Mobile and Broadband Internet communications through its continuous technology leadership. Providing innovative solutions in more than 140 countries, Ericsson is helping to create the most powerful communication companies in the world. Read more at http://www.ericsson.com/press FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: James Borup, Press Relations, Division Mobile Systems Ericsson Corporate Communications Phone: +46 70 590 9261; E-mail: james.borup@lme.ericsson.se Kurt Sillén, Vice President Marketing Ericsson GSM, TDMA, EDGE Systems Phone: +46 8 757 2220; E-mail: kurt.sillen@era.ericsson.se Read more about GSM and Ericsson's impressive array of firsts at http://www.ericsson.com/press