Mobile calls will overtake landline by 2009

Mobile calls will overtake landline by 2009, regulator predicts

By Channel 4 News

Updated on 29 August 2008

Calls from mobile phones are predicted to outnumber fixed line calls in the UK within two years, Ofcom has announced.

Households are now more likely to have a mobile service than a fixed line, with the UK's 70 million mobile phone subscriptions exceeding the population of 60 million, the regulator said.

Ofcom has published an initial consultation document looking at how the industry should be regulated, saying it will deregulate where competition is protecting consumers.

Some 85 per cent of the adult population in the UK now have a mobile, served by the most competitive mobile industry in Europe, Ofcom said.

The document says the UK telecommunications market has changed "immensely" since mobile services were first launched, with mobile calls "set to outnumber fixed calls in the UK within the next 12 to 18 months".

Some 85 per cent of the adult population in the UK now have a mobile, served by the most competitive mobile industry in Europe, Ofcom said.

But although more than 90 per cent of consumers were happy with their mobile service, 1.4 million were either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied.

The regulator said: "Ofcom is concerned that complaints by consumers about mobile services appear to be rising. We are looking at how to ensure that rules to protect consumers are clear, effective and relevant, given the rapid changes in technology."

The consultation will also look at alternatives to the current regulation of mobile termination rates; the charges that operators make to connect calls to each other's networks. It will ask for ideas on extending the coverage of mobile networks across the UK.

Ofcom chief executive Ed Richards said: "Mobile communication is now a central feature of modern life. As our flourishing mobile sector evolves, we want to help maintain strong competition and innovation alongside consumer protection.

"With significant market and technology developments under way, now is the right time to ask some tough questions about the future approach to regulation. We look forward to a wide ranging debate on these issues."