• by April 9, 2001

According to Jupiter Media Metrix global advertising, commerce and subscription revenue from mobile phones will reach $7.5 billion by 2003, with North America accounting for just $0.7 billion, or less than 10 percent of the total. "Despite a growing wireless audience, the U.S. is a revenue wasteland for mobile phone content providers" said Dylan Brooks, Jupiter analyst.

According to Jupiter's Global Wireless Model, Asia's 136 million mobile surfers will generate $5 billion in revenue by 2003, an average of $37 per active user. "Asia's dominant share will be driven by Japan's early lead in wireless technology and payment systems," said Nina Young, Jupiter analyst. Western Europe will represent $1.7 billion in revenue.

Jupiter analysts expect greater adoption of wireless access protocol in the future, with advertising, commerce, and subscription revenues growing from just over 100 million dollars this year to nearly $8 billion in 2005.

Wireless carriers continue to miss the boat in the United States. "Business users have been first to adopt wireless data and Internet services" said Becky Diercks, director of In-Stat's Wireless Service. "With a population of more than 250 million in the United States today, however, the consumer market has barely been penetrated." In-Stat estimates there are more than 109 million wireless phone service subscribers and more than 60 million households with Internet access in the United States.

"These numbers indicate demand for wireless Internet should be significant. However, there are only slightly more than 600,000 consumer wireless data users in the United States today, representing just one-half of 1 percent of all U.S. wireless subscribers," Diercks said.

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