US : For the first time, the number of active base stations worldwide is set to pass 3 million units by the end of 2007.

A new study published by IMS Research “The Worldwide Market for Cellular Infrastructure - 7th edition” is looking, among other topics, at the worldwide installed base of base stations. This is expected to jump from just above 2.7 million in 2006 to nearly 3.1 million in 2007.

One of the main findings of the report is that GSM still accounts for the vast majority of base stations worldwide and is set to retain significant market share in the following years. The number of the GSM base stations is growing worldwide, with the exception being Europe where there is a greater migration from GSM to more efficient UMTS networks.

Matia Grossi, lead analyst for infrastructure, says “The explosive growth in number of cellular users, especially in developing countries, is driving the growth in the number of cellular base stations being installed”. Grossi goes on “Operators in these developing countries are choosing GSM because (among other reasons) of the availability of cheaper infrastructure equipment that the technology can offer”.

“On the other hand in developed countries, continuous technological innovation, increased competition in the market and aging networks, means that the replacement market starts to play an increasingly determinant role. The growth of the number of base stations installed in these regions is going to be very low, with rollouts of new networks being a rare event in the next 2-3 years, and operators relying heavily on software upgrades to increase the capacity of their networks” Grossi comments.