US
: Mobile phone users may be starting to flock to UMTS in their millions,
but according to ABI Research, GSM will continue to expand in 2005,
thanks to the robust data capabilities of EDGE.
"GSM providers
that are continuing to stay with GSM are going to be upgrading to
EDGE," says Ray Jodoin, the NY-based technology analysts' principal
analyst of wireless infrastructure research. "A lot of the more
recent GSM/GPRS base stations that have been built are EDGE-compatible,"
he notes, "so it's principally a software upgrade that is eminently
affordable."
While users will
require new handsets to take advantage of EDGE's speed and benefits,
more than 100 GSM service providers worldwide have already committed
to EDGE, according to Jodoin.
Both UMTS and
EDGE will roll out, with UMTS's higher performance capabilities, including
streaming video, being deployed in major urban and other areas with
high population densities. EDGE is likely to be deployed in other
areas and by GSM service providers who are on a budget.
Nonetheless, for
the next year, look out for GSM providers to upgrade to EDGE at an
ever-increasing rate.