Smartphone addiction and the impact on NGNs

New Ofcom research has revealed the continued growth of mobile services thanks mainly to the extent to which the UK has become addicted to smartphones. Richard Griffiths, Core Telecom’s Director of Marketing, looks at the impact of this trend on non-geographic numbers.

Richard Griffiths, Core Telecom

Over a quarter of adults (27 per cent) and almost half of teenagers (47 per cent) now own a smartphone, according to Ofcom’s latest Communications Market Report.   Most (59 per cent) have acquired their smartphone, which includes devices such as iPhones, Blackberrys and Android phones, over the past year.

Users make significantly more calls and send more texts than regular mobile users (81 per cent of smartphone users make calls every day compared with 53 per cent of ‘regular’ users).  Teenagers especially are ditching more traditional activities in favour of their smartphone, with 23 per cent claiming to watch less TV and 15 per cent admitting they read fewer books.

Work/life balance

The vast majority of smartphone users (81 per cent) have their mobile switched on 24/7/365 and Ofcom’s research found that the line between work and social time is becoming increasingly blurred.  Smartphone users are more likely to or annual leave.  Seventy per cent od Smartphone users  say they have taken part in work calls while on holiday, compared with just 16 per cent of ordinary mobile phone users.

Digital decade

Ofcom’s report also looks at the changes which have transformed the communications market during the last decade.  It found that:

Nine out of ten people own a mobile phone (36 per cent in 2000, 91 per cent in 2011) – and one in seven households are now mobile-only, as the penetration of landlines dropped from 93 per cent in 2000 to 81 per cent in 2011;

Consistent with the growth of mobiles and smartphones, the number of mobile voice minutes has grown by 250 per cent over the past decade (from 35 billion to 125 billion per year), and the number of text messages sent has increased by 2000 per cent (from 7 billion to 129 billion per year).

The recent adoption of smartphones has been accompanied by an increase in the volume of mobile data transferred over the UK’s mobile networks. This increased forty-fold between 2007 and 2010.

The impact on Non Geographic Numbers

Clearly the massive growth of mobile penetration and usage has to be considered by any business that wants to use NGNs as its primary inbound call mechanism. Some mobile users will only ring 08 numbers reluctantly due to the higher call charges than standard geographic numbers. So, 03 numbers, which cost the same to call as standard geographic numbers and are increasingly included in the landline and mobile packages of the major operators, are a smart option.

The growth of mobile shows no sign of abating and with landline penetration declining, now is the time to capitalise on the benefits of 03 numbers. They provide the same level of control and reporting as other non-geographic numbers, but maximise your inbound calls because the public trusts them.

Contact Core Telecom on 0844 504 0000 or email us if you’d like to find out more.