Strapped CDMA operators turn to GSM

According to the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) CDMA operators feeling the pinch, are increasingly turning to flavours of GSM (GSM/EDGE, WCDMA-HSPA) to keep their businesses growing.

The organisation’s latest report suggests that operators choose a dual system strategy but found that most prefer to migrate their whole customer base to GSM.

The GSA survey confirms 25 operators who are deploying or operating GSM/WCDMA technology either as an overlay, or as a replacement of the existing CDMA systems.

According to the GSA, no instances of a network operator abandoning GSM in favor of CDMA have been found. The vast majority of TDMA operators also chose a migration path to the GSM family.

GSM had over 2 billion subscriptions by June 2006, and over 81% share of the global market.