GSA, the (Global mobile Suppliers Association) confirms that the number of commercially launched LTE networks has passed the 500 milestone. According to its latest research, 503 operators have commercially launched LTE networks in 167 countries of which around 25% of LTE operators have launched LTE-Advanced systems. GSA forecasts that there will be at least 550 commercially launched LTE networks by the end of 2016.
According to GSA, the number of LTE and LTE-Advanced subscriptions reached 1.068 billion worldwide by the end of 2015. LTE continues to grow faster than any other mobile communications system technology and is already responsible for 1 in 7 mobile subscriptions worldwide. Data on LTE subscriptions for the first quarter of 2016 will be published by GSA in the next few days.
Alan Hadden, VP of Research, GSA
Several LTE operators are now introducing LTE-Advanced Pro technologies, sometimes referred to as 4.5G, which is established as a major industry trend in 2016. LTE-Advanced Pro systems can support peak downlink speeds up to 1 Gbps and beyond.
