3G Brings New Opportunities to U.S.

Orlando Sentinel reports on how the roll out of high-speed 3G data networks are enabling new opportunities for carriers and end-users alike. Yankee Group analyst Linda Barrabee stated carriers currently derive much less revenue from data services than voice but is increasing at a modest rate. She predicted revenue from wireless data will climb from about 5 percent of all revenue last year to "16 percent within the next five years." She added that new content, such as music and video, would be needed to fuel adoption and drive revenue.

Barrabee said, "Carriers haven't delivered a really easy and palatable experience. If you can deliver that with quick snippets of video, people will pay for that."

According to Chris Ambrosio at Strategy Analytics, it still might be a few years before the market takes off due to high prices for devices and services being a barrier to adoption. He also concurred with Barrabee that content would be critical.

Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin said, "It's a basic behavioral thing. People basically see a cell phone as a regular phone with the wire cut. There's going to have to be a different use model and a new, emergent vision and new content.

"One thing that will make a difference is a sense of urgency. If you have video that is news-related on a phone, that will have some traction," he added.