New figures highlight need for spectrum to meet unprecedented mobile broadband demand

The Australian Government needs to fast-track spectrum allocation decisions to ensure the mobile telecommunications industry can meet the surging demand outlined in new figures showing mobile broadband subscriptions doubling last financial year.

AMTA Chief Executive Officer Chris Althaus said the latest Goldman Sachs JB Were figures showed that mobile broadband subscriptions increased by more than 100% from around 1 million to 2.2 million during 2008-09.

Australia could not afford indecision on three key spectrum allocation issues at a time of unprecedented economic volatility.

He said mobile operators needed certainty about retention of their existing spectrum allocations, access to the 2.6GHz band and at least 120MHz of useable spectrum from the Digital Dividend so Australia can meet and benefit from the rapid surge in demand for mobile broadband services

Mr Althaus said: “The mobile telecommunications industry needs access to sufficient spectrum to ensure the deployment of new and competitive mobile broadband technologies, such as Long-Term Evolution (LTE), will not be delayed into the Australian market.”

LTE will significantly enhance the mobile broadband experience for users, who will be able to access more performance-demanding applications with peak download speeds up to 100 Mbps.

The mobile telecommunications industry recognises that both the quantity and quality if infrastructure are key nation building success factors. Radiofrequency spectrum is the critical enabling infrastructure for the deployment of advanced mobile telecommunications services.

“The mobile industry is one of consistent growth and will contribute to Australia’s recovery from the economic downturn. The industry is poised to continue investing in next generation networks that will drive Australia’s productivity and boost growth, but only if there is a degree of certainty about the availability of key spectrum allocations,” Mr Althaus said