Consumers set mobile pace
Vodafone live! and i-mode set for huge growth in Europe this year
Mobile data services such as Vodafone live! and i-mode are poised for huge growth in Europe this year, but business users will not be the key market.
A report by telecoms consultancy Analysys said that handset quality and price will be key factors in the uptake.
Alastair Brydon, chief executive of Sound Partners, which conducted the research for Analysys, said: "The mass market is the key to mobile data. SMS is dominant because it is used so widely.
"But with 3G networks, the initial focus will be on data cards for business users, like the one Vodafone is launching in the UK. Until 3G terminals appear, it makes sense for operators to milk their 2G networks."
Nick Evans, mobility business manager at reseller IT Partnerships, said: "In some parts of the IT world, especially on the telco side, business users follow consumers. Handsets are going to be critically important to 3G."