Worldwide smartphone market expands

VoIP traffic is forecast to grow thanks to a report by Strategy Analytics on the state of play in the global smartphone market.

The report shows that in quarter four 2009 global smartphone shipments had jumped 30 per cent, year-on-year.

This marked the industry's fasted growth rate since quarter three 2008.

Sales were pushed higher by a combination of a strengthening of the global economy and a greater selection of phones on offer to consumers - from updated models of the popular iPhone and Blackberry, to entirely new products in the form of Google's Nexus One.

Apple outgrew its major rivals while RIM (Research in Motion; manufacturers of the Blackberry) achieved double-digit shipments for the first time.

Nokia also experienced major growth, shipping record volumes of its Eseries line-up.

The majority of smartphones are 3G capable and Wi-FI capable, which is necessary for the effective use of VoIP. As the smartphone market increases, so too does the potential user-base for VoIP products.

As VoIP traffic rises in tandem with the smartphone market, growth can also be expected in the data centre and fibre sectors of the telecom industry as these provide the infrastructure necessary for widespread VoIP.