28 February 2008
The worldwide demand for mobile phones is continuing to grow, according to new figures from industry analysts Gartner.
Over 1.15 billion phones were sold last year, the data reveals, which represents a 16% rise on sales from 2006. Some 330 million mobiles were sold in the fourth quarter alone.
Caroline Milanesi, research director for Gartner, said that although mobile sales are continuing to increase globally, "mature markets" such as the UK may be growing saturated.
Around 30% of the market share for mobile devices is in Western Europe and the US, Gartner said, adding that there are more mobiles in circulation in Britain than there are people, as some consumers own more than one phone.
As the appetite for mobiles grows, so does innovation; recently, Sony Magazine suggested that consumers could soon be able to buy a Playstation games console that would also function as a mobile phone.