History of cellular mobile communications

Cellular mobile phones are often regarded as a fairly recent innovation, however, they have been freely available in the UK for over 20 years.

The first type of mobile phone was large and cumbersome and similar in size to a large briefcase. These phones were analogue based and in the early days not overly reliable, due to the two existing network operators needing to install an effective infrastructure of network coverage quickly.

With the launch of the second generation (2G), consumer popularity rose steadily. Mobile phones became smaller and easier to handle. Network coverage improved greatly and it became more reliable.

During the period between December 1999 to December 2000 a total of 46,000 new users a day joined the UK mobile phone network. 5.1 million phones were bought in the UK during the 2000 Christmas period.

Number of mobile connections
Click graph to enlarge

Mobile Phone Usage

In its report, 'The Communications Market Report 2009' Ofcom provides the following information from December 2008 to December 2009.

There are over 80 million mobile connections in the UK, over 4 million customers now access mobile broadband services via a laptop and dongle, and over 12 million people own a smart phone to access internet and web based services.

At the end of 2009 14% of adults live in a home that has a mobile phone but no landline.

Total mobile revenues fell by 3.5% to £14.9 billion in 2009.

46% of voice minutes originated from mobile phones in 2009, up from 41.8% in 2008.

2G mobile telephony services covered 97% of the population and 3G services covered 87% of the population.

The number of text messages sent increased by 25% in 2009 with over 100 billion sent, equivalent to 1700 for every person in the UK.

Nearly one in three mobile connections were using 3G at the end of 2009 as total 3G connections grew by 7.1.million to 25.5 million.

Network

At the start of 2009 there were approximately 51,300 base station sites in the UK, and this figure could rise to approximately 52,500 by the end of 2009. Two-thirds of these are installed on existing buildings or structures. Less than 2% are mounted on schools.

UK Economy and GDP associated with the mobile phone industry:

The continual increase in demand for mobile communications has contributed significantly to the welfare of the UK economy. In 2003 the number of employees dependent on the mobile phone sector rose to around 197,000. The industry contributes £15 billion a year to government finances*.

The UK is one of the most advanced telecommunications markets in Europe and provides the lowest prices for mobile phone usage. With the speed of new technology within the telecoms industry, the swift introduction of the new third generation (3G) over the next few years will be key to maintaining the UK's competitive edge.

* O2 May 2004 report: "The Contribution of Mobile Phones to the UK Economy"