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Telecoms – the recovery starts here
$1tn of spending should cheer up Orange, Vodafone et al

By Jo Best

Published: Tuesday 10 February 2004

At least one sector of the tech market is hearing the sound of cash registers ringing as the recovery rumbles on - telecoms.

Analyst firm IDC predicts that the telecoms market will ring up more than $1tn - yes, that's one trillion dollars - of spending in the course of 2004. According to IDC's Worldwide Telecommunication Black Book the sector as a whole will enjoy growth 4.4 per cent greater than in 2003.

The driver for the upturn will, of course, be data services. Instead of the usual MMS and WAP-based offerings, IDC's pinning its predictions on the higher end of the data market - saying that IP-based services, such as broadband web access and IP VPNs, will lead the way. Consumers' hunger for data will see revenues from data services rise by 16 per cent year-on-year and bring in a quarter of all revenues. The upward trend will continue in the coming years, with $375bn to be spent globally this year.

However, the old skool is not to be trifled with. Rena Bhattacharyya, programme manager for world telecoms markets at IDC, said in a statement: "The voice market will continue to be a key part of the industry and will generate more than two-thirds of the industry's revenue throughout the forecast period."