May 16, 2005
Mobile phone numbers just don't ring true
The number of mobile-phone users in the UK may be overstated by as much as 15m, according to a new analysis, reports The Times Online.
"A survey commissioned by Enders Analysis, a research firm, found the proportion of adults with a mobile is wildly at odds with figures reported by Vodafone, Orange, O2, T-Mobile and other operators.
Company figures suggest there are now more mobiles in use than the total UK population of 60m.
Although a number of people may have more than one mobile, James Barford at Enders believes millions of phones are abandoned in drawers and essentially unused. Some are retained on company books because they occasionally receive a text message or a “wrong number” call.
Barford said the number of these “barely active” phones has grown sharply in the past year because of the accelerated pace of handset upgrades.
The Enders study sheds light on an industry conundrum: how the mobile-network operators have been able to report increases in subscriber numbers when just about everybody who wants a mobile phone already has one."
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