Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone services, which 2006 counted less than 38 mln subscribers worldwide, should have a subscriber base of over 267 mln in 2012, ABI Research says.

Growth in digital camera shipments by Japanese makers in 2007 is expected to slow to 7.5% from 2006, when lower prices and a wider variety of models with interchangeable lenses spurred growth to 22%. Demand will continue to lose speed as shipment growth is expected to slow to 4.3% in 2008, and 2.5% in 2009.

Surplus semiconductor inventories in the global electronics supply chain rose again in Q4 2006, meaning that excess stockpiles are likely to linger through 2007, iSuppli predicts. Total excess chip inventory swelled to $4.3 bln in Q4 2006, up 4.9% from $4.1 bln at the end of Q3 2006.

The ranks of Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) subscribers grew dramatically in 2006. However, the real excitement is just beginning, as subscribers rise to more than 65 mln by 2010. The growth of IPTV will contribute to a telecom operator revenue stream of about $18 bln by 2009. At the other end of the value chain, sales of semiconductors for IPTV across all categories will grow to $7.8 bln by 2009, iSuppli reports.

According to Parks Associates, the total digital home health market in the US will grow at an average annual rate of 36% and turn into a $2.1 bln industry in 2010. The rapid expansion of wellness monitoring programs and online patient-physician messaging services will partly drive this growth.

57% of teachers use Internet-based news in the classroom with some frequency, said Carnegie-Knight Task Force on the Future of Journalism Education. The most popular sites are run by large news organizations like BBC, The New York Times and CNN.com

Forbes reports there are now 665 mln copies of XP installed worldwide, giving it 74.3% share of the PC installed base. Other versions of Windows account for another 190 mln units, or 21.6% share.

From 2005 to 2010, annualized growth of console subscribers will be 40.8%, and growth of handheld subscribers will be 94.2%. Online console revenue will grow at a 46% annual rate over the same period. Revenue from handheld online gaming may begin to become a factor in 2007.

Music-player enabled mobile phones now are driving competitive positioning in the wireless handset market. Music phone shipments will exceed 300 mln units in 2006. Full track music delivered to these handsets will drive the mobile music market across all categories to more than $15 bln by 2010, iSuppli reports.

Mobile phone users in the UK accessed the internet via their handsets about 15.9 mln times throughout December 2006, says the Mobile Data Association.

In 2006, venture capitalists put $727 mln into 39 alternative energy start-ups, compared with $195 mln in 18 such firms for 2005, according to the National Venture Capital Association.

According to PhoCusWright, one of the key competitive areas for the online travel industry is in the groups and meetings market, which they say will represent $175 bln by 2008. Median spending for group gatherings is $1,800 (not including corporate meetings). On average, 19 individuals attend a gathering and that event typically lasts 3.5 days. The top 5 destinations for group travel include: Florida, California, Las Vegas, the Caribbean and Mexico. 55% of group travelers are traveling for a family reunion or function. Younger respondents (21-34) are more likely to plan friend reunions, school group/class reunions, Bachelor/Bachelorette parties, and concerts or other entertainment/spectator sport events.

Worldwide end users spent $1.16 trillion on information technology in 2006 and will increase IT spending at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.3% to reach $1.48 trillion in 2010, IDC says. Worldwide software spending is expected to reach $327 bln in 2010, reflecting a five-year CAGR of 7.7%. The largest markets are discrete manufacturing, the services industries, and government. The fastest-growing markets are healthcare, communications, and government. Worldwide hardware market spending is set to recover in the 2006?2010 period, reaching $562 bln in 2010. IDC sees rising spending on volume servers, peripherals and storage, and networking equipment across regions. It is driven mainly by the robust spending from the home business and consumer, communications, and government sectors. IDC expects spending on IT services worldwide to reach $587 bln in 2010, reflecting a CAGR of 5.8% from 2005 to 2010. The largest market opportunities reside in government, banking, and discrete manufacturing.

Hosted VoIP will continue to experience dynamic growth over the next few years, with projected revenues exceeding $2 bln by 2010, In-Stat says. In-Stat projects US hosted VoIP seats in service will continue to grow steadily to over 3 mln in 2010, up from 373,000 in 2006. Cost savings remains the primary attraction to hosted VoIP solutions, but the value associated with business-grade solutions is resonating more strongly among businesses that are willing to pay for them.

ABI Research found that the total energy consumption arising from mobile broadband service delivery is forecast to grow from 42.8 bln kilowatt hours (KWh) in 2005 to 124.4 bln KWh in 2011. The Asia Pacific region will account for the majority of this growth.

Portable Media Player (PMP/MP3) shipments will grow by more than 30% in 2006, jumping well beyond 160 mln units, iSuppli reports.

In Japan, PC shipments totaled 14.2 mln units in 2006, a 3.3% decline from 2005. The Japan market experienced a difficult Q4, as shipments approached 3 mln units, a 12.6% decline from Q4 2005. Both the professional and private market showed negative YTY growth in Q4, Gartner reports.

Jon Peddie Research estimates that approximately 76 mln PC graphics devices shipped from major suppliers in Q3 2006, a 5.2% increase from the prior Q and an 11.2% increase over the same period the previous year. The desktop graphics segment saw shipments increased 2% from Q2 2006 to Q3 2006 and shipments grew 4.7% YTY. Integrated desktop shipments dropped 3% sequentially (the second consecutive quarter of decline) but increased 3.3% annually. Discrete desktop shipments jumped 10.2% on a quarterly basis and grew 6.8% YTY.

The mobile graphics segment saw quarterly shipments rise a dramatic 13.8% and grow 30.2% YTY. IGC shipments drove growth in the mobile market in Q2 2006 with a stunning 15.8% growth during the period, and discrete mobile shipments grew 7.5% during the quarter and jumped 9.3% compared to the same period the previous year. JPR estimates that a record 22.7 mln mobile graphics devices shipped in Q3 2006, 17.4 mln of which were integrated chipsets for notebooks. Mobile IGCs claimed a share of 76.8% in the mobile graphics market, up from 75.4% in the prior quarter and up from 72.3% in the same period a year ago. Intel led the mobile graphics market with a 51% share (down from 54%), ATI dropped to a 24% share, and Nvidia jumped with a 8% market share gain to 19% for the quarter. In the discrete mobile segment, ATI saw shipments decline dramatically on a quarterly basis while Nvidia saw shipments increase sequentially. Nvidia grew discrete mobile segment share from 37% in Q1 2006 to 53% in Q3 2006. ATI’s segment share fell from 63% in Q2 2006 to 47% in Q3 2006. JPR estimates that approximately 53 mln desktop graphics devices shipped in Q3 2006, 31.7 mln or 59.5% of which were integrated parts. Overall, Intel held at 35% of the desktop graphics market, ATI dropped to 22%, and Nvidia grew to 25% market share. In the discrete desktop segment, Nvidia also grew, to 57% share and ATI claimed 43% share during the period.