Subject: [NEXTEL-1] 121 million wireless users in Latin America by end of 2003 - report

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 11 Feb 2003 16:08:49 -0500

121 million wireless users in Latin America by end of 2003 - report

The Yankee Group predicts that the increasing penetration of prepaid mobile services into
lower-tier markets, coupled with the growing availability of refurbished handsets, will
fuel continued mobile subscriber growth in Latin America. The wireless subscriber base
will grow 17% in 2003, leading to the sale of approximately 36 million handsets. Wireless
services revenues will increase to US$20 billion.
The Yankee Group forecasts TDMA terminals will be the single largest handset category,
representing approximately 46% of total handsets sold in 2003. Although operators are
deploying CdmaOne/Cdma2000-1x and GSM/GPRS networks in the major markets--Argentina,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico--TDMA networks still have more extensive coverage and
offer the lowest consumer prices in the region. The Yankee Group expects this trend to
start reversing in 2004. Regional players America Movil and TIM are expanding their
GSM/GPRS networks, which enabled GSM/GPRS to increase to 34% of handsets sold in 2004.
"With total service revenue increasing from US$19 billion in 2002 to more than $28 billion
in 2006, the mobile market is still one of Latin America's most attractive service
sectors," says Luis Minoru, Yankee Group Wireless/Mobile Latin America senior analyst.

Posted to the site on 11-Feb-03

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