Digital Mobile Radio Achieves Milestone of 2 Million Global Subscribers in 2012

Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) counted more than 2 million subscribers last year in a major milestone since the first major network shipments started four years earlier, and the technology has become significant as users continue to transition from analog to digital, according to a new report on the subject from IMS Research, now part of information and analytics provider IHS (NYSE: IHS).

While only one DMR supplier could be found in 2010, many more vendors since then have developed DMR solutions or have announced their intention to do so, demonstrating the market’s promising prospects. Continuing success in the years ahead can be expected thanks to greater demand, notes the IHS report entitled “DMR/dPMR and Competing Technologies - World - 2013.”

Worldwide DMR subscribers last year reached 2.13 million, up a sizable 54 percent from 1.38 million in 2011. This year, users will increase by a projected 40 percent 2.97 million. And by 2017, the total installed base for DMR active radios will hit 7.19 million, a mighty leap from just 330,000 subscribers in 2009.

Developed in Europe, DMR is an open standard for digital radio aimed at professional mobile users. Mobile radios, base stations and switches form part of a complete DMR terminal solution, and the products are used in areas as diverse as public security, law enforcement and public utilities.

“DMR has been one of the real success stories in the Licensed Mobile Radio industry in recent years,” said Deryn Evans, senior mobile radio market analyst at IHS. “With its attractive pricing point, it is a great option for those users looking to migrate from analog to digital at a lower cost than some of the other technologies. The increase of the DMR subscriber base to more than 2 million is confirmation of DMR’s appeal, which IHS forecasts will only increase further in the coming years.“
 
Among the factors driving the growth of the DMR market is the migration to digital. While the majority of the user base for Licensed Mobile Radio still utilizes analog, the shift to digital is under way and gathering pace, offering great potential for DMR as well as other digital technologies in the coming years.

“With the availability of DMR Tier III, which is now shipping following several successful trials worldwide, as well as with new vendors entering the market increasing competition further, there are even more options for analog users to switch to DMR,” Evans observed.  Growth in this market will be greater than for any other radio technology, IHS predicts.

The recently published report, “DMR/dPMR and Competing Technologies - World - 2013” provides an in-depth analysis of the market for DMR, as well as dPMR, NXDN and PDT. The report provides comprehensive data sets of radio installed base, shipments and revenue, split by technology, geographic region and vertical market. Forecasts up to 2017 are also included.

Source: IHS