7.2 Mbps is New Baseline for HSPA

Half of the HSPA networks in commercial service globally are capable of peak downlink data speeds of 7.2 Mbps or higher, according to research just published by the Global mobile Suppliers Association – GSA. GSA’s newly released HSPA Operator Commitments Survey confirms 316 HSPA network commitments in 129 countries.

A total of 274 operators have commercially launched HSPA mobile broadband services in 115 countries, with around half of them supporting a peak downlink data speed of 7.2 Mbps or higher. WCDMA has over 73% market share of commercial 3G networks worldwide. Almost 95% of WCDMA operators have now launched HSPA. A related survey by GSA confirms that 1,605 HSPA devices have been launched by 183 manufacturers. The number of products announced increased by over 121% year-on-year. The number of HSPA-enabled notebooks tripled year-on-year, with the number of phones and smartphones rising by more than 88% in the same period. Excluding notebooks, a total of 595 HSPA products (over 46%) support peak downlink data speeds of 7.2 Mbps or more.
source: 3g.co.uk