Research is starting to find links between the adoption of 3G mobile technologies and economic growth, and a new multi-million dollar study intends to delve deeper into the connection, says ITWire this week.

According to Curtin Business School in Western Australia, there’s indications of a direct link between the timely adoption of 3G mobile technologies and economic growth, and the school’s Professor Gary Madden says that Thailand has lagged in the adoption of 3G technology, Sweden has adopted some 3G, while Japan’s take up of 3G has been comprehensive.

Professor Madden, director of Curtin’s communication economics and electronic markets (CEEM) research centre, says that, while investment in 3G technologies can have a positive impact on economic growth, “government policies that delay the investment process can cause substantial economic loss.”

Professor Madden today announced that Curtin was involved in a five-year multi-million dollar research project to study the benefits of third-generation (3G) mobile technology adoption. The research, to be conducted in conjunction with prominent universities in Thailand, Sweden and Japan, with funding from various telecommunications organisations in those countries - and led by Professor Madden - will analyse current 3G mobile usage and subscription intentions using consumer data from Thailand, Sweden and Japan.

Professor Madden said the research results would produce a unique insight into the potential for economic development from adopting 3G technology in a country like Thailand, and the project would be discussed at the International Telecommunications Society’s fourth Africa-Asia-Australasia regional conference to be held at Curtin’s Bentley campus from the 16th to 18th of August this year.

The Thailand national market survey is currently underway, funded by the country’s National Telecommunications Commission, and coordinated by Thammasat University’s International Cooperation Study Centre.

The Swedish survey will be implemented in September and will be overseen by the department of technology management and economics at Chalmers University of Technology, with co-supervision of Swedish PhD students by Professor Madden.

Professor Madden says the final survey component will be led by the Graduate School of Information and Telecommunications Studies at Waseda University, Japan and funded by Japanese mobile telephone provider NTT DoCoMo. Professor Madden also said that at the August telecommunications conference in Perth, links would be established through the signing of Memorandums of Understanding between Curtin’s Communication Economics and Electronic Markets research centre, International Cooperation Study Centre (Thammasat University, Thailand), the National Institute for Development Administration, Thailand and the Department of Technology, Management and Economics at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.

AMTA has contacted Professor Madden and offered to provide information to assist his study. He has been sent Access Economics’ study on the economic significance of the mobile telecommunications industry in Australia, which was commissioned by AMTA.