One of the fascinating aspects of working in the tech sector is the continuous ream of facts and figures on the state of the world’s networks. Barely a week passes without a new set of data being published that usually signals the end of the modern world, or at the very least the collapse of the network as we know it. Earlier this month, however, I read a report on mobile broadband suggesting that things may not be as bad as we think.

Published by Analysis Mason, the report discusses the growth of mobile data and states that we’re far from seeing the much vaunted data explosion. In fact, their figures state that Europe’s mobile data is growing at around 35% and is set to slow in 2011. This is quite a contrast to research I received from telecom analyst Dimitris Mavrakis. According to figures he received from Vodafone, mobile data is growing at 88% year-on-year.

These figures are similar to those being seen in the US. Dan Hesse, Sprint CEO, is reporting a dramatic increase in mobile data, up 112% in 2010. The picture is equally emphatic from another telecom analyst, Peter Rysavy. In a report sponsored by RIM, Mr Rysavy sees mobile data growing at exponential levels and fears that the US will run out of mobile spectrum by 2013.

The so-called spectrum shortage is something the FCC is taking very seriously. In a recent blog post, I discussed how the dramatic increase in mobile video consumption is impacting on mobile broadband and what service providers are doing to ensure that bandwidth demand is met. The FCC is now rallying the industry to explore different approaches to solving this issue. The much-discussed white-space networks is one such example.

However, there does seem to be a slight difference in the figures for mobile data growth. Mobile providers seem to be discussing year-on-year growth of 80-110%, whereas analysts and the FCC are far more conservative, suggesting growth of around 35%. So who’s right? Some reports suggest that mobile providers are inflating their figures to impact on new pricing models. Others argue that the analysts and the FCC are being too conservative and unresponsive to the growing mobile broadband demand.

In 2011 this picture will likely change again as LTE deployments begin. All I know is that the mobile experience both in urban and rural environments is still far from satisfactory. Will 4G deployments remedy this?

What do you think to the mobile bandwidth crunch? Are we in danger of a mobile meltdown or are research figures too extreme. Let me know what you think.