Hear that loud ringing around the world? Can you feel the good vibrations? The Beach Boys are pleased. The Wall Street Journal’s Adam Ewing reports that there are an additional 305 million mobile phones sold in Q2, 2008, representing 12% growth from the year before. That means there are nearly a third of a trillion more phones in the world interrupting theater productions and Bar Mitzvahs everywhere.
Even though the growth seems substantial, it represents a slowdown from last year’s 21% rate. Much of the growth is attributed to countries where you don’t drink the water emerging markets. The global smartphone trend is exploding, however. It is expected that the market share will grow by over half to nearly 200 million phones. Worry not — iPhones are selling. The report includes more detailed statistics that we won’t bore you with, but we’re seriously hoping that these things don’t cause brain cancer, because the Amish will be the only ones left.
