Aug/Sept 2008

Nearly a quarter of people who access broadband Internet services on the move (23 per cent) are now using a USB 'dongle' or data card plugged into a mobile computer, reflecting massive growth in this method of going online. The figure is quickly closing on the one for people using mobile phones for broadband access (31 per cent).

However, mobile broadband growth is so fast that data traffic may quickly outstrip the capacity needed for mobile voice services.

These are among a myriad findings brought out in two major new reports (actually 'consultation documents') on the telecoms market that have been published almost concurrently by Ofcom, the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries.

One of them, Mobile citizens, mobile consumers, reports in detail on the entire mobile phone and data market, while the other, The Communications Market 2008, extends the scope to TV, radio and broadband use alongside mobile communications.

Both documents are linked to a drive for feedback, which in each case can be submitted online. The Mobile citizens report in particular supports a consultation process, under which comments on the future of the mobile market are invited by 6 November

Generally the two reports take an upbeat view of the mobile market, reporting numerous ways in which it has grown, bringing falling costs for users. People in the UK are spending more time using communications services than ever before, the reports say, yet are paying less for them.

They add that the UK has the most competitive mobile industry in Europe, with five operators and 'a healthy number' of virtual network operators competing to offer services. The sector generates over £15 billion a year – 51 per cent of overall retail revenue for telecoms in the UK.

The Ofcom Web site has plenty more information, as well as an interactive submission system for comments, plus free downloadable PDF versions of the reports. You'll find the links on our own companion Web site, www.FollowUpOnline.net.