Cdma
Chapter 3—Mobile services
Mobile coverage to regional Australia has increased incrementally since the Regional Telecommunications Inquiry (RTI) was conducted. An estimated 98 per cent of the Australian population had access to a terrestrial mobile network at the end of June 2005. This includes a large proportion of people living or working in rural and remote areas. The structure of the industry supplying mobile services has remained relatively stable since the RTI reported in 2002, in contrast with the supply of fixed voice and broadband services. However, the availability of higher bandwidth and value-added services has increased with the roll-out of third-generation (3G) networks and with upgrades to existing global system for mobiles (GSM) and code division multiple access (CDMA) mobile networks. Yet despite the availability of these services to a large proportion of the population, the market for mobile data is still in its infancy. This chapter examines the supply and take-up of mobile services and the expansion of existing mobile networks into regional and remote areas through government programs. It also profiles the emergence of new or enhanced networks offering valueadded mobile services.
Key themes
• • • Mobile networks and services supplied over those networks have expanded since the RTI reported⎯in terms of both coverage and the range of value-added services on offer. With 18.42 million mobile services in operation at the end of June 2005, mobile service penetration (mobile phone service per head of population) in Australia is around 90 per cent, up from 72 per cent in June 2003. As growth in subscriber numbers plateaus, value-added services are increasingly being seen as a potentially significant revenue stream, which is driving the roll-out of 3G networks, as well as the provision of higher bandwidth services on existing mobile networks. The availability of mobile services in regional areas has been facilitated by government programs that have
Mobile coverage to regional Australia has increased incrementally since the Regional Telecommunications Inquiry (RTI) was conducted. An estimated 98 per cent of the Australian population had access to a terrestrial mobile network at the end of June 2005. This includes a large proportion of people living or working in rural and remote areas. The structure of the industry supplying mobile services has remained relatively stable since the RTI reported in 2002, in contrast with the supply of fixed voice and broadband services. However, the availability of higher bandwidth and value-added services has increased with the roll-out of third-generation (3G) networks and with upgrades to existing global system for mobiles (GSM) and code division multiple access (CDMA) mobile networks. Yet despite the availability of these services to a large proportion of the population, the market for mobile data is still in its infancy. This chapter examines the supply and take-up of mobile services and the expansion of existing mobile networks into regional and remote areas through government programs. It also profiles the emergence of new or enhanced networks offering valueadded mobile services.
Key themes
• • • Mobile networks and services supplied over those networks have expanded since the RTI reported⎯in terms of both coverage and the range of value-added services on offer. With 18.42 million mobile services in operation at the end of June 2005, mobile service penetration (mobile phone service per head of population) in Australia is around 90 per cent, up from 72 per cent in June 2003. As growth in subscriber numbers plateaus, value-added services are increasingly being seen as a potentially significant revenue stream, which is driving the roll-out of 3G networks, as well as the provision of higher bandwidth services on existing mobile networks. The availability of mobile services in regional areas has been facilitated by government programs that have