bluetooth

The Bluetooth industry is poised to continue expanding exponentially over the next few years. In 2001, only 7.2 million Bluetooth solutions in various form factors were shipped. This grew five times within the next year. By 2006, annual Bluetooth product shipments are expected to surpass 1 billion units. Worldwide Bluetooth shipments in 2004 were estimated at 110 million to 140 million units. A recent study by market research firm In-Stat/MDR estimated that 146 million Bluetooth chipsets were shipped in 2004. Forecasts for 2005 placed shipments between 210 million and 280 million Bluetooth products. Global production of Bluetooth devices will top 210 million units this year, twice last year's number. Taiwan, mainland China and Hong Kong will account for 31％ of that figure. To date, mainland China accounts for about one percent of the world's Bluetooth shipments. Still in its infancy, the country's Bluetooth industry has about 25 local manufacturers. In 2004, although some companies left the line, new entrants kept the supplier base at previous numbers. Surveyed makers from mainland China shipped 1.23 million units last year. These companies account for 60 percent to 70 percent of the country's total production. Scheduled new product releases have these firms projecting an increase of 125.17 percent in output for this year.