The United States has outstanding LTE coverage compared to other markets, however worldwide carriers are beginning to upgrade their networks to deliver the high-speed wireless technology to their customers. According to a new report from ABI Research, the total mobile data traffic for 2012 amounted to 13,412 petabytes, an increase of 69% from 2011 when 3G data usage accounted for 46% of all traffic. The accelerated adoption of 4G LTE is expected to increase in 2013, however. The research firm estimates that LTE data traffic will grow an astonishing 207% year-over-year in 2013, compared to 99% growth for 3G traffic. The increase for LTE traffic comes as a result of added 4G deployments in developed markets throughout the world. There are still a number of markets that have not yet upgraded to the technology, though.
About Shelly Palmer
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with technology, media and marketing. Named LinkedIn’s “Top Voice in Technology,” he covers tech and business for Good Day New York, is a regular commentator on CNN and writes a popular daily business blog. He's a bestselling author, and the creator of the popular, free online course, Generative AI for Execs. Follow @shellypalmer or visit shellypalmer.com.