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cdmaOne Subscribers Reach Almost 23 Million Globally; All Regions Showing Substantial Growth
NEW ORLEANS, LA, Feb. 8, 1999 - cdmaOne continues to soar in all regions, reaching close to 23 million global subscribers as of December 31, 1998. With cdmaOne customers almost tripling in 1998, cdmaOne continues its pace as the fastest growing wireless technology in the world.
In 1998, worldwide cdmaOne customers grew by approximately 15 million subscribers. In North America alone, cdmaOne subscribers now total 6.8 million, growing 453% in the last year and more than 150% in the last quarter. In Latin America, cdmaOne experienced a phenomenal increase, growing over 400% in the last quarter as new operators came on-line in Brazil, Mexico, and Peru. The Asia Pacific region continues to soar, showing no signs of slowing subscriber growth because of economic difficulties. The region now totals close to 15 million subscribers, up approximately 133% in the last quarter and 237% for all of 1998.
"This unprecedented growth has exceeded our projections. It is a testimony to the tremendous customer and operator acceptance that cdmaOne has achieved around the world. cdmaOne operators are now clearly the most competitive carriers in the marketplace and they're well positioned for the future, as cdmaOne evolves to become the global third generation (3G) wireless standard," said Perry LaForge, executive director of the CDMA Development Group. "We believe that this remarkable growth will continue in all regions as operators continue to differentiate themselves by exploiting the advantages that only cdmaOne provides."
cdmaOne Worldwide Subscriber Growth
September 1997 through December 1998
Source: CDMA Development Group
Commenting on the performance of each of the regions, LaForge noted, "Historically, cdmaOne has grown rapidly in Asia, the source of our largest subscriber base. We expect a significant cdmaOne subscriber increase in this region throughout 1999 as operators continue to rollout their networks. New networks such as Australia will also come on-line soon. In North America cdmaOne now provides coast to coast coverage, with multiple cdmaOne operators in many markets. This has clearly put cdmaOne operators in a dominant position in the marketplace relative to their GSM counterparts. We also expect significant gains in Latin America. Look for explosive growth as more systems go live throughout Mexico, Brazil and other countries this year."
LaForge concluded, "Now with 23 million subscribers, cdmaOne has continued to outpace its own record-breaking growth rate. With the advent of wireless Internet access, high-speed data, and wireless local loop applications, we know this will continue. We anticipate at least 40 million cdmaOne global subscribers as we enter the year 2000, positioning cdmaOne as the technology for the new millennium."
Today's cdmaOne subscriber numbers were released by the CDG at the CTIA Wireless '99 show at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, LA, February 8-10, 1999.
***cdmaOne is a trademark of the CDG
Japan cdmaOnetm Subscriber Numbers Booming; Exceed 400,000 Customers in Six Months
NEW ORLEANS, LA, Feb. 8, 1999 -- The CDMA Development Group (CDG) today announced that cdmaOne now serves over 400,000 subscribers in Japan with approximately 140,000 subscribers added in December 1998 alone. With this growth, Japan is now playing a significant part in the acceptance of cdmaOne around the world.
DDI Corporation launched commercial cdmaOne service in Japan in July 1998. According to DDI, three of its companies, Kansai Cellular Telephone Company, Kyushu Cellular Telephone Company and Okinawa Cellular Telephone Company reach more than 400,000 cdmaOne service subscribers. In addition, DDI recently stated that, in cooperation with IDO Corporation, they will expand their cdmaOne service, providing nationwide coverage in April, 1999. DDI's and IDO's cdmaOne infrastructure equipment is provided by Motorola Cellular Infrastructure Group.
"We applaud Japan's continued commitment to cdmaOne and expect even more consumers in this region to choose cdmaOne with the advent of nationwide coverage in April," said Perry LaForge, executive director of the CDG. "With recent cdmaOne wins in the Asia-Pacific and Australian regions, Japan's deployment of cdmaOne will facilitate roaming throughout the area."
"We are excited to see that our cdmaOne service has gained significant popularity throughout Japan in a short time period," said Kiyoshi Sato, director and general manager, Planning Department, Mobile Communications Group, DDI Corporation. "DDI has chosen cdmaOne as its technology of choice because it enables us to provide our subscribers with the services they demand, especially enhanced features such as short messaging services, superior voice quality and high speed data transmission."
Late last year, the CDG recognized DDI and IDO Corporations for excellence in marketing with an Industry Achievement Award for their successful marketing campaign leveraging the cdmaOne brand name. DDI is using the cdmaOne brand name extensively in their promotional materials, featuring film star Leonardo Di Caprio to gain instant brand recognition.
LaForge concluded, "I cannot over-emphasize how significant the growth of cdmaOne is in Japan. Last year, some naysayers were predicting the economic crisis in Japan would stall cdmaOne subscriber growth. Clearly they were wrong. They have built strong brand awareness through the use of the cdmaOne name and rapidly increased their subscriber base. They are now in a position to leverage the advantages that cdmaOne provides in order to gain additional share of the growing Japanese market." |
