Mobile Data Usage Trends 2011-2015

With the increasing affordability, the uptake of data services is growing among mobile users in both developed and emerging countries. Furthermore, the consumption of data services has increased significantly among existing data services users.

Worldwide mobile data traffic stood at 231.1 Petabytes per month at end-2010. With the rising number of web-enabled mobile devices, cloud computing, alternate access networks such as Wi-Fi, and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) making huge infrastructural investments to improve the quality of networks, mobile data traffic is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 91.2 percent between 2010 and 2015 to reach 5,904.1 Petabytes per month by end-2015.

With the emergence of mobile data services, a valuable new revenue stream has arisen for operators. The growing importance of data services has prompted MNOs to design strategies to maximise the revenue-earning potential of these services. However, mobile data revenue is not growing as fast as mobile data traffic. Worldwide mobile data revenue stood at USD 290.3 billion in 2010 and is expected to grow at a comparatively lower CAGR of 13.2 percent between 2010 and 2015.

This new market study thoroughly examines Mobile Data Usage Trends over the following eight fact-filled chapters:

Introduction
Worldwide Mobile Market
Mobile Data Services Market
Market Size
Case Studies - Regional Trends (The UK, China, India, The US, Chile, The UAE)
Managing Data Traffic Growth
Summary and Conclusions
Appendices

In many markets today, mobile users are often armed with advanced internet-enabled mobile devices, especially smartphones and tablets, and generally expect access to a vast range of previously-extraordinary services to come more or less as standard - and this has wide-reaching ramifications.

In this context, knowing simply that mobile data use is rising is insufficient, it becomes instead vital to understand the extent to which this is occurring, and what mobile activities users are undertaking.

Exactly what is the typical user doing with their phone (of ranging specification)? What mobile data services are consumers actually using, and how frequently, and for how long?

Despite the high-powered nature of current mobile devices, is it truly network-straining mobile video streaming that users are consuming, or is it ostensibly still the traditional revenue stalwarts (for MNOs) of messaging (SMS and MMS) and voice?

To attain a clearer understanding of mobile data usage trends for this exciting new report, Portio Research conducted a consumer survey (between June and mid-July 2011) to gather usage patterns among the mobile subscribers of six countries:

The UK (Europe)
China (Asia Pacific)
India (Asia Pacific)
The US (North America)
Chile (Latin America)
The UAE (Africa and Middle East)

Led by survey responses, we have assembled detailed country case studies that reveal the specifics of data use - culminating in a Typical User Profile for each assessed market, based on the respondent pool.
0The above countries were selected in order to depict the trends in both developing and developed markets. The UK and the US have some of the highest levels of smartphone penetration and mobile broadband adoption, and there have been aggressive efforts by MNOs in these markets to move to high-speed networks to accommodate burgeoning user demand for data services. On the contrary, China and India’s smartphone penetrations are less than 4 percent, even though they lead in terms of mobile subscriber numbers. Chile has one of the highest ARPU figures among countries in Latin America, and also experienced the highest growth rate in mobile subscriber base between Q1 2010 and Q1 2011. Meanwhile, the UAE has one of the highest mobile penetrations worldwide.

Further reasons to buy this research:

Worldwide, regional and country-level analysis
Attain a clearer understanding of mobile data usage trends through survey-led research
Familarise yourself with the evolution of the mobile data services market; and types of mobile data services
Gain insight into the factors that make a data service successful
Identify drivers and inhibitors of mobile data services
See exactly what mobile activities subscribers are using their advanced devices for
Scrutinise data on mobile apps discovery, app stores, and paid and free app downloads
Examine key facts of the mobile markets covered
Essential reading for all in the fast evolving mobile space