Study: Most Will Use Cell Phone for Internet by 2020

• Posted: Thursday, December 18, 2008
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• Author: pradhana
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• Filed under: Internet Phone

By Sue Marek

The iPhone may have paved the way for consumers to access the Internet via their cell phone, but it will take another 12 years for the cell phone to become the primary gateway to the Internet for people worldwide.

According to the Pew Internet & American Life Project's "Future of the Internet III study," nearly 600 Internet experts said the combination of portability and relative affordability will turn the cell phone into the leading Internet gateway by 2020.

The experts interviewed said that by 2020 they expect there will be a set of universal standards making it easier for users to maintain a consistent connection to the Internet. In addition, the researchers expect future mobile phones will function more as computers than phones making it difficult to distinguish between a mobile phone and a laptop.

Based upon the report, Pew suggests mobile technology may offer a better alternative for providing Internet access than computers through projects such as One Laptop per Child Initiative. [FierceMobileContent]

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