3 Offers Unlimited Data Downloads For Smartphone Users
The mobile phone network 3 is set to bring unlimited data downloads to smartphone users.
The mobile phone network 3 has said that it will offer unlimited data downloads for smartphone users in an attempt to lure users on networks with monthly limits. Networks such as Orange and Vodafone have monthly data limits of around 500MB but 3 says its offer will really mean unlimited.
Other mobile networks reduced their data allowances in the summer for smartphones including the iPhone and Google Android phones. This was because operators said that a 500MB limit would be suitable for the majority of users. O2 said overall data use was doubling every four months and the number of iPhones on its network had doubled in just a year. This suggests that smartphone users are using an increasing amount of data.
However 3 believes there’s a gap in the market and will allow users to install their SIM in devices other than their smartphone (known as tethering). A spokesman for 3 said “We will allow tethering and as long as someone isn’t doing something illegal then we will allow it”.
3 hopes that their offer of unlimited data downloads will increase their share of the market which is dominated at the moment by Everything Everywhere with a 31% share, O2 with a 27% share and Vodafone with a 22% share. At the moment 3 has just a 10% share of the market.
The decision by 3 to scrap data limits could mean other mobile operators have to re-think their strategy on data downloads. However, there are concerns that allowing unlimited data downloads could put a strain on 3’s network.