Global smartphones forecast to triple to 5.6bn

The number of smartphones is expected to triple to 5.6 billion globally by 2019, according to a report Monday released by Sweden's Ericsson AB, the world's largest maker of telecommunications networks. In the report, smartphone traffic will grow tenfold in the next six years, with service providers increasing high-speed networks to deal with the surge. Total mobile subscriptions are predicted to reach 9.3 billion by 2019. Ericsson says smartphones currently make up some 55 percent of all cellphones sold but represent only 25 to 30 percent of all mobile subscriptions.