Digital Economy set to boom

The EU plans to invest €18m from January 2010 into the future of a "ultra high-speed" mobile internet.

The European Commission will be funding research on Long Term Evolution (LTE) Advanced Technology, which will offer mobile internet speeds up to 100 times faster than current 3G networks.

Viviane Reding, the EU's Commissioner for Telecoms and Media explained: "With LTE technologies, Europe's research know-how will continue to set the tone for the development of mobile services and devices around the globe, just as we did in the past decades with the GSM standard.

"LTE technologies will turn mobile phones into powerful mobile computers. Millions of new users will get ultra high-speed internet access on their portable devices, wherever they are. This will create tremendous opportunities and plenty of space for growing the digital economy.

As well as boosting the capacity of network operators and increasing the speed of mobile broadband, LTE technologies could bring mobile broadband to less populated regions and contribute to the reduction of the digital divide between rural and urban areas.

Last Updated: 27-08-2009 11:03:23 By Katherine Hitchcock