The mobile industry will invest $1.1 trillion by 2017 and the ecosystem around it is expected to employ 10 million people globally, said a report released by global industry body GSM Association said.

"For the period through 2017, the mobile industry will invest $$2.6 trillion to public funding. Importantly, in 2017, companies across the ecosystem will employ nearly 10 million people globally," 'The Mobile Economy 2013' report prepared Developed by GSMA and consulting major AT Kearney said.

The report said revenue from total mobile ecosystem revenues reached $1.6 trillion -- around 2.2 per cent of the global Gross Domestic Product ( GDP).

"To fully realise this future and to enable the mobile industry to maximise its investments, it is essential that we establish a light-touch regulatory environment, based predominantly on competition, and develop new business models that will allow all ecosystem participants to benefit from the mobile economy," GSMA Director General Anne Bouverot said.

The report said it expects a further 700 million subscribers will be added by 2017 and the 4 billion-subscriber milestone will be reached in 2018 across the globe.

At the end of 2012, there were 6.8 billion mobile connections worldwide and the study expects it to grow to 9.7 billion by the end of 2017.

High speed internet on mobile phone accounted for 1.6 billion of these connections in 2012, increasing to 5.1 billion in 2017, including 920 million LTE connections, the report said.

Mobile subscriber penetration globally stood at 45 per cent while mobile connection penetration is currently 94 per cent.

As per GSM Association Wireless Intelligence, the variance between the number of mobile subscribers and the number of mobile connections is related to multiple sim ownership as well as inactive sims.

Source : TOI