LONDON. - Friday, August 1st 2014 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE) Tom Phillips, Chief Regulatory Officer, GSMA, offered the following statement regarding the outcome of the International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) Joint Task Group meeting in Geneva:

“At a critical ITU meeting in Geneva yesterday, governments across the globe agreed to put forward for detailed discussion a number of new spectrum bands for use by mobile broadband services. While a final decision will not be taken until the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) in November 2015, the GSMA welcomes the news that the full range of new spectrum bands supported by the mobile industry remain potential solutions to meet the growing demand of consumers globally for mobile data.

“Extensive technical analysis has been carried out by governments, industry and international organisations to support the allocation of new spectrum for mobile broadband services. New, harmonised spectrum is vital to ensure that mobile networks can cope with the exponential growth in data traffic that we are witnessing today and for the future delivery of affordable and ubiquitous mobile broadband coverage.

“Importantly, the rapid expansion of mobile technology is transforming economic opportunity around the world. Today, the mobile industry generates, directly and indirectly, 3.6 per cent of global GDP (equivalent to US $2.4 trillion) and 10.5 million jobs and this contribution is expected to rise to 5.1 per cent of GDP and 15.4 million jobs by 20201.

“The decisions made at the WRC in 2015 will have a direct impact on the ability of all the world’s citizens to benefit from access to the Internet. As mobile will be the way that the Internet is accessed for the majority of those currently unconnected, the allocation of new spectrum for the mobile Internet is therefore critical.”

Notes to Editors

Find out more about the GSMA’s Spectrum4All campaign at http://www.gsma.com/spectrum/spectrum4all/.

1 Source: GSMA The Mobile Economy 2014: http://www.gsmamobileeconomy.com/

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide. Spanning more than 220 countries, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world’s mobile operators with 250 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and Internet companies, as well as organisations in industry sectors such as financial services, healthcare, media, transport and utilities. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Expo.

For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at www.gsma.com. Follow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA.

Contacts

For the GSMA

Elli Karagiorgas (London)

+44 (0)7867 652 754

elli.karagiorgas@webershandwick.com

GSMA Press Office

pressoffice@gsma.com