Mobile broadband is continuing to grow at a fast pace due to the ever increasing introduction of new technologies, new networks, new devices and competitive innovation in the market.

On July 27, 2009 the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) announced that 7.2 Mbps had become the new baseline for mobile broadband globally, since at that time half of the HSPA networks in commercial service globally were capable of supporting a peak downlink data speed of 7.2 Mbps or higher, supported by almost 600 user devices capable of 7.2 Mbps or higher which had been launched in the market. Some HSPA systems support a peak downlink data speed up to 14.4 Mbps.


HSPA Evolution (HSPA+) is the next step for many operators, which increases data rates by using higher order modulation schemes and multiple antenna technology (MIMO).

3GPP Release 7 introduced 64 QAM modulation, increasing the downlink peak data bit rate by 50% to 21 Mbps. In the uplink, 16 QAM doubles the peak data bit rate from 5.76 Mbps to 11.5 Mbps. Release 8 allows for combining 64 QAM with 2×2 MIMO for peak rates up to 42 Mbps downlink and 11.5 Mbps uplink (per 5 MHz carrier). Further evolution of HSPA will utilize combinations of multi-carrier and MIMO to reach peak rates of 84 Mbps downlink and 23 Mbps uplink. 62 operators worldwide have committed to HSPA+ network deployments.

Read the Full GSA Press Release...

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GSA represents leading GSM/3G/WCDMA-HSPA and LTE suppliers worldwide, covering close to 100% of mobile market share. Industry professionals and organizations globally use www.gsacom.com as a single information resource, targeted to the industry, for authoritative facts, market intelligence, objective analysis and information.

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