A drop in data prices has led to the widespread use of mobile
broadband USB sticks,
which is mirroring the take-off of mobile phones in the
mid-1990s, according to a report published this week.
UK data charges have fallen from £45 per Gbyte two years ago to
about £3.50 per Gbyte on average, said Jessica McArdle, a spokesman
for comparison website
Top 10
Broadband.
She said that packages were 65% cheaper, four times faster and
three times more inclusive in terms of download allowance than the
£45 equivalent of two years ago.
McArdle said a series of price drops in the
mobile broadband market means that mobile broadband is no
longer perceived to be the luxury product it was two years ago.
She said operators will start to include mobile broadband
dongles as part of standard mobile phone deals as early as 2009,
mirroring the way operators now include
broadband with fixed phone deals.