Subscriptions and usage

Worldwide broadband subscriptions

	2007a	2010a	2013a,b
World population	6.6 billion	6.9 billion	7.1 billion
Fixed broadband	5.2%	7.6%	9.8%
Developing world	2.3%	4.2%	6.1%
Developed world	18.0%	23.6%	27.2%
Mobile broadband	4.0%	11.3%	29.5%
Developing world	0.8%	4.4%	19.8%
Developed world	18.5%	42.9%	74.8%
a Per 100 inhabitants. b Estimate.]

Broadband subscriptions by region

Fixed subscriptions:	2007a	2010a	2013a,b
Africa	0.1%	0.2%	0.3%
Americas	10.9%	14.1%	17.1%
Arab States	0.9%	1.9%	3.3%
Asia and Pacific	3.2%	5.5%	7.6%
Commonwealth of Independent States	2.3%	8.2%	13.5%
Europe	18.4%	23.6%	27.0%
Mobile subscriptions:	2007a	2010a	2013a,b
Africa	0.2%	1.8%	10.9%
Americas	6.4%	22.9%	48.0%
Arab States	0.8%	5.1%	18.9%
Asia and Pacific	3.1%	7.4%	22.4%
Commonwealth of Independent States	0.2%	22.3%	46.0%
Europe	14.7%	28.7%	67.5%
a Per 100 inhabitants. b Estimate.

It is estimated that there were 6.6 billion mobile phone subscriptions worldwide at the end of 2012 (89% penetration), representing roughly 4.4 billion subscribers (many people have more than one subscription). Growth has been around 9% year-on-year.^[11] Mobile phone subscriptions are expected to reach 9.3 billion in 2018.^[7]
At the end of 2012 there were roughly 1.5 billion mobile broadband subscriptions growing at a 50% year-on-year rate.^[11] Mobile broadband subscriptions are expected to reach 6.5 billion in 2018.^[7]
Mobile data traffic doubled between the end of 2011 (~620 Petabytes in Q4 2011) and the end of 2012 (~1280 Petabytes in Q4 2012).^[11] This traffic growth is and will continue to be driven by large increases in the number of mobile subscriptions and by increases in the average data traffic per subscription due to increases in the number of smartphones being sold, the use of more demanding applications and in particular video, and the availability and deployment of newer 3G and 4G technologies capable of higher data rates. By 2018 total mobile broadband traffic is expected to increase by a factor of 12 to roughly 13,000 PetaBytes.^[7]
On average, a mobile PC generates approximately seven times more traffic than a smartphone (3 GB vs. 450 MB/month). By 2018 this ratio is likely to fall to 5 times (10 GB vs. 2 GB/month). Traffic from smartphones that tether (share the data access of one device with multiple devices) can be up to 20 times higher than that from non-tethering users and averages between 7 and 14 times higher.^[7]
Note too that there are large differences in subscriber and traffic patterns between different provider networks, regional markets, device and user types.^[7]
Demand from emerging markets has and continues to fuel growth in both mobile phone and mobile broadband subscriptions and use. Lacking a widespread fixed line infrastructure, many emerging markets leapfrog developed markets and use mobile broadband technologies to deliver high-speed internet access to the mass market.