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Berg charts growth of LTE and HSPA mobile broadband
The telecoms analyst found HSPA and LTE subscriber numbers grew by 33 per cent last year.
Research from the telecoms intelligence firm revealed the number of subscribers to these services rose by 33 per cent year on year during 2010 to reach 33.9 million, representing 20.9 per cent of all active broadband customers.
Growth is expected to continue over the coming years, with connection numbers set to hit 96 million by 2016 after rising by a compound annual rate of 18.9 per cent.
However, the success of these mobile broadband products has not been replicated in the North American market, accounting for just 13.2 per cent of all lines.
Between 2010 and 2016, Berg Insight predicts annual growth of just over a quarter, taking connection numbers in the US and Canada to 58 million at the end of the period.
Across Europe, levels of mobile broadband adoption were found to alter significantly from country to country. The highest uptake was recorded in Austria, where penetration stands at more than 20 per cent, equivalent to just under half of all the nation's broadband subscriptions.
In contrast, penetration rates of less than three per cent were recorded in Belgium, Greece and Switzerland.
Analysing the popularity of different mobile broadband device manufacturers, Berg found that Huawei has established itself as the market leader with a global share of 49 per cent, followed by ZTE with 31 per cent.
The study comes after Ofcom published research earlier this year that showed 17 per cent of UK households use mobile broadband to access the web, while seven per cent rely on the technology as their only means of getting online.
"Consumers use these services to complement fixed-line services or sometimes as their principal means of accessing online services," commented Ofcom chief executive Ed Richards.