Mobile devices in use to exceed population by 2017

Mobile devices in use to exceed population by 2017

A new report from mobile device manufacturer, Ericsson, predicts that the number of mobile devices in circulation will exceed the population of the Earth within five years.

The number of mobile subscriptions is set to rise from the current number of 6.2 billion, to 9 billion by 2017. By this point, the Earth’s population will stand at 7.4 billion according to the US census Bureau.

The rise of the number of mobile devices being used around the world comes in response to the growing demand for storing files in the cloud, online video and general internet usage. Ericsson’s latest Traffic and Market report outlines predictions that data traffic will account for the vast majority of the increase in usage - growing by 15 times its current level by 2017.

Hans Vestberg, Ericsson’s chief executive, explained, "By 2017 there will be close to 9 billion subscriptions. With this kind of mobility and connectivity everywhere, there will be no differentiation between a business user and a private user."

The report added that within the five years covered in the report, half of the world’s population will have access to superfast broadband. This will be a major increase from the current level of just 315 million.

The research carried out by Ericsson was undertaken by monitoring the use of its own managed networks. The report claimed that although only half of the world’s population currently lives within range of a mobile broadband signal, this is to increase to 85 per cent within five years.

iPhone devices currently top the list of mobile devices being used, followed by Android devices, with Windows Phone coming in third.

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