The GSM Association reported today that there are now more than 4 billion mobile connections in the world. Growth is being driven by the transition from unconnected to connected devices and subscriber growth in emerging markets.
The high-speed HSPA standard now accounts for about 100 million connections, reflecting the growing popularity of mobile data connections.
4 billion connections does not equate to 4 billion users though as many users have more than one device. But many connections are also shared by people in developing markets so the number of users may not be so far off.
The association also predicts that there will be 6 billion mobile connections by 2013.