Check this out, courtesy of the Washington Post
GENEVA -- The number of mobile phone users will overtake the number of nonusers this year for the first time, according to the U.N. telecoms agency.
Ownership rates in developing countries are rising fastest, with Brazil, Russia, India and China alone accounting for 1 billion subscribers last year, the International Telecommunication Union said.
In 2000, only 12 percent of the global population had a mobile phone.
"At current growth rates, global mobile penetration is expected to reach 50 percent by early 2008," according to ITU's January newsletter.
3.3 billion cell phones. As recently as 2005 (according to infoplease.com) there were 2.16 billion. That's a 52% increase in just 3 years.
I remember having a cell phone off-and-on starting in about 1998. I'm instantly terrified that that was a decade ago, but I digress. Phones were still barely pocket-sized (thank God baggy was still "in" then) and they were just starting to be something that mere mortals had; you didn't need to be wealthy or super-important to have one.
Skip ahead to 2004 and I've somehow gotten hired by Sprint. Now I have a cell phone full-time and there's no turning back. Now I can call and check in on the baby (Xander was born just shy of a month after I got hired) any time. I can take a picture of him and email it to any and everyone. Right from the phone. No cables, no down or uploading. Just snap and send. And nowadays, a separation later, I can even read him a bedtime story from the parking lot at the Safeway 120 miles away.
That kind of increase in connectivity is amazing. Think about how much more quickly news can get out of smaller countries? Or bigger ones that are a little more secretive than others? The rate at which totally uncensored information can be shared is incredible, and it's only going to get better.
Right now there are only 2 major frontiers that haven't been conquered by connectivity: the skies and the subway.
The FAA still isn't changing its mind about allowing the use of cell phones on airplanes, but there hasn't been that much public outcry. I mean, I'd be lying if I said I was psyched about have over a hundred people, in exceedingly close proximity, with their ringtones blaring and talking way way way too loud for no good reason. JetBlue is testing in-flight Wi-Fi, which may be a happy compromise. I know I'd be a happy flyer if I had me some YouTube at my seat.
The subway is the other bane of connectivity, but that one is a little easier to remedy. In DC, for instance, Verizon Wireless has signal repeaters in the tunnels so that their customers can stay connected. Sprint customers are connected too, due to the fact that sprint doesn't charge extra to roam onto Verizon's network. As soon as VZW's exclusivity contract is up other carriers, like AT&T and T-Mobile, can put in their own repeaters. That would mean that Andrew could stay connected 24 hours/day.
Granted, this increase in cellular saturation and coverage means there'll be that many more douchebags who won't shut up in restaurants or who will subject us to the Macarena while we're trying to watch a movie, but I think that the benefits outweigh the costs.
So, what do you think?
Leave a comment