It’s a mobile data world: In 2013 voice stopped being US carriers’ main revenue driver

Just like that, in the fourth quarter of 2013 mobile data usage ticked up to reach a crossover point, making data a bigger revenue source for carriers than voice services.

From this point on data will be the primary growth driver for the US mobile industry, while voice will recede in the rearview mirror. Mobile analyst Chetan Sharma predicted this voice-data flip would occur in 2013, and he turned out to be right on target.

In the fourth quarter, mobile data revenues grew 5 percent quarter over quarter and 20 percent year over year to $24.8 billion, barely eclipsing voice revenues, according to Sharma’s most recent US Wireless Market Update. In total, US carriers brought in $90 billion from mobile data plans in 2013.