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The latest update from the Organisation for Economic...

The latest update from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (http://xrl.us/bqe3vv) shows that wireless broadband penetration grew to more than 68 percent in the OECD area as of June, meaning there are now more than two wireless subscriptions for…

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every three inhabitants, the group said Thursday. Mobile broadband subscriptions in the 34-country group were up more than 16 percent from a year earlier, to a total of more than 851 million, driven by the ongoing demand for smartphones and tablets, it said. Australia, Denmark, Finland, South Korea, Japan and Sweden are now above 100 percent penetration, with Australia in first place because of a large surge in smartphone subscriptions in the first half of last year, it said. The U.S. came seventh in the ranking of wireless broadband subscriptions for 1,200 inhabitants, the OECD said. DSL remains the predominant technology for fixed broadband subscriptions, but it’s being gradually replaced by fiber, which now serves nearly 16 percent of subscriptions, it said. Two-digit annual growth in fiber take-up was the result of increases in large OECD nations with low penetration rates such as France, Spain, Turkey and the U.K., it said.