3G sales ready to rock, says Nokia

NOKIA reckons global sales of high-speed internet 3G mobile phones will soar from 16m to 70m this year as customers rush to dial up music and video downloads.

The giant mobile phone maker also sees a jump in overall sales from 1.7bn to 3bn by 2010 as the industry continues on its phenomenal growth path.

It forecasts most of the growth will come from developing markets such as Latin America, the Middle East and Africa.

Nokia's latest handset boasts 'video sharing' which lets callers watch the same video clip as each other while having a conversation.

There was more evidence at the industry gathering in Cannes that landline and mobile technologies are linking up.

Mobile operator Orange and internet provider Wanadoo have joined forces to offer a laptop internet access card that moves between fixed line and mobile networks to find the fastest connection. Both companies are owned by France Telecom.

The alliance mirrors that of BT and Vodafone. Their Project Bluephone, due this spring, will comprise a standard home phone handset that jumps from BT's network to Vodafone's when it is carried outside.