Broadband News
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Not spot-light thrown on mobile networks
06 Oct 2009 | 20.31 Europe/London
A new report's been released that highlights the problems consumers and small businesses are having with their mobile operators. The Communications Consumer Panel (CCP) says that, as things stand, not even 2G coverage across the UK is up to scratch - never mind networks capable of supporting mobile broadband.
According to the CCP research, over half of consumers are encountering problems with mobile coverage - and the figure jumps to over ninety per cent when it comes to small businesses. As well as "not spots," people are having to endure poor quality and intermittent coverage - and even dropped calls. As many as one in three asked said they're running into such difficulties on a regular basis.
"While all the focus is on rolling out new services like mobile broadband, our research reveals that large numbers of consumers and small businesses are still having problems making even basic voice calls," said Anna Bradley, who's the chair of the CCP. "The importance of mobile phones will continue to grow, and it will be increasingly vital for consumers and small businesses to have the coverage they expect and need," she continues.
However, one firm says "no mobile operator can guarantee continuous network coverage" because of "local and physical conditions." "Building materials and atmospheric conditions, or environmental obstacles like tunnels, dips, cuttings and wooded areas can interfere with radio signals and impair mobile reception strength for all mobile networks," Orange told BBC News. Despite such "factors outside [its] control," Orange says its 2G network extends to 99% of the country; its 3G network 93%.
In line with this, the solution proposed by the CCP is for consumers to have the option of a"try before you buy" contract. Another operator, O2, says it already offers just that - in the form of a fourteen day cancellation policy for its phone products. "In addition, for home broadband and mobile broadband, we offer a 30-day happiness guarantee, which allows customers to try the service at home and in their local area," a spokesperson from the Telefonica-owned firm said via a statement.
If you're in the mood, you can read up on the CCP's findings relating to consumers here and relating to small businesses here. Or you can just read the handy summary, which reveals such insights as:
But as always, it's worth considering the sample size of the study in hand. When it comes to consumers, around two thousand adults were asked - and the data published has been "weighted" in an attempt to make it "representative of the population, compensating for unequal probabilities of selection and the variation in response rates of population subgroups." When it comes to small businesses, however, there were less than a hundred and fifty recipients to the CCP's survey; even it admits its findings in this respect "should therefore be viewed as indicative rather than definitive." In other words: take the data with a pinch of salt.
According to the CCP research, over half of consumers are encountering problems with mobile coverage - and the figure jumps to over ninety per cent when it comes to small businesses. As well as "not spots," people are having to endure poor quality and intermittent coverage - and even dropped calls. As many as one in three asked said they're running into such difficulties on a regular basis.
"While all the focus is on rolling out new services like mobile broadband, our research reveals that large numbers of consumers and small businesses are still having problems making even basic voice calls," said Anna Bradley, who's the chair of the CCP. "The importance of mobile phones will continue to grow, and it will be increasingly vital for consumers and small businesses to have the coverage they expect and need," she continues.
However, one firm says "no mobile operator can guarantee continuous network coverage" because of "local and physical conditions." "Building materials and atmospheric conditions, or environmental obstacles like tunnels, dips, cuttings and wooded areas can interfere with radio signals and impair mobile reception strength for all mobile networks," Orange told BBC News. Despite such "factors outside [its] control," Orange says its 2G network extends to 99% of the country; its 3G network 93%.
In line with this, the solution proposed by the CCP is for consumers to have the option of a"try before you buy" contract. Another operator, O2, says it already offers just that - in the form of a fourteen day cancellation policy for its phone products. "In addition, for home broadband and mobile broadband, we offer a 30-day happiness guarantee, which allows customers to try the service at home and in their local area," a spokesperson from the Telefonica-owned firm said via a statement.
If you're in the mood, you can read up on the CCP's findings relating to consumers here and relating to small businesses here. Or you can just read the handy summary, which reveals such insights as:
- 36% of consumers say they have experienced not-spots and 18% of consumers experience them regularly
- 80% of business respondents say they have experienced not-spots and 24% have experienced this regularly
But as always, it's worth considering the sample size of the study in hand. When it comes to consumers, around two thousand adults were asked - and the data published has been "weighted" in an attempt to make it "representative of the population, compensating for unequal probabilities of selection and the variation in response rates of population subgroups." When it comes to small businesses, however, there were less than a hundred and fifty recipients to the CCP's survey; even it admits its findings in this respect "should therefore be viewed as indicative rather than definitive." In other words: take the data with a pinch of salt.