Dongle purchases boost mobile broadband take-up

The take-up of dongles used for mobilebroadband access has grown in recent months, with 18,000 selling each week in early March, reports Top Ten Broadband.

Figures cited by Mobile Today reveal that almost 60,000 dongles were sold in January this year, compared to 27,000 in October 2008, with around 15 million people in the UK now surfing the web and potentially using VoIP solutions over a mobilebroadband connection.

Mobilebroadband has also seen its appeal broaden beyond the business customers who were originally the primary customer base, with the technology now as popular for leisure purposes.

This change suggests that people may be just as keen updating their Facebook profiles on the train or in the local coffee house as they are staying in touch with colleagues in the office.

Mobilebroadband is being viewed as a way in which the government's target of universal connectivity can be achieved within the next few years.

One option being considered is to utilise wireless networks already occupied by mobile phone providers.