14 DAY TRIAL // Mobile broadband is reportedly enjoying slower traction on the market in the UK, as fewer people are signing up for the service. According to UK based price comparison website, Broadband Expert, the boom of mobile broadband sales has come to an end, and the fact that the number of people signing for the service went down by 57 percent during the last twelve months is a proof of that.
The sales of mobile broadband are said to have dropped from around 3,000 in May 2009 to 1,300 in May 2010. Experian Hitwise data provides further support for these findings. According to that data, the amount of searches for the phrase “mobile broadband” has also seen a drop of around 50 percent during the same time frame.
Rob Webber, Broadband Expert's commercial director, believes that consumers in the UK market have been let down by the technology on mobile broadband. The main factors that create the disliking of the technology would be slow speeds and poor coverage. “Mobile broadband experienced phenomenal growth in the UK as consumers expected all the benefits of a home broadband connection whilst on the move,” he says.
However, the mobile broadband technology does have a lot to offer, though the manner in which it is used might be faulty. “Sadly the technology has not lived up to the hype; we receive a huge amount of feedback from customers complaining of inconsistent or non-existent connections and speeds comparable to dial-up or worse.”
According to Webber, the upcoming availability of faster mobile broadband speeds via LTE should offer the technology the necessary power to regain its place in consumers' hearts. “We're already seeing companies rolling out LTE networks in the US and Europe, but the UK is still 12-18 months away from this. LTE should boost mobile broadband speeds massively, with downloads speeds of over 100mbps achieved in testing; so it could outperform and even replace home broadband in the future,” he said.