Mobile-data usage rises fourfold in a year
Hongkongers' use of mobile data rose fourfold in the year to January, the Office of the Telecommunications Authority said yesterday.
Publishing such data for the first time, it said 147 terabytes of mobile-data usage was recorded in January, up from 36.78 terabytes in January last year. This January's figure was 14 times the amount of mobile data used in January 2007.
Mobile-data usage measures the internet traffic on devices using SIM cards, including mobile phones and small, handheld computers.
The average usage for each 2.5G and 3G user this January was 44 megabytes, up from 12.6MB in January last year.
Each mobile customer sent out an average of 41 short messages this January, up from 36 in January last year, and received 56, up from 51. The total number of short messages sent in January exceeded 421.5 million, up 22 per cent year on year, while more than 579.8 million messages were received, up 19 per cent.
A spokesman for the telecoms watchdog said the remarkable growth in mobile-data usage was 'consistent with the trend observed in other advanced economies and demonstrates that Hong Kong has matured as a leading wireless city in the region'.
He said the strong growth of mobile-data usage was due to the competitive service packages offered by mobile network operators and the increasing popularity of smart phones.
The number of 2.5G and 3G mobile phone users increased by 15 per cent year on year in January, hitting 3.35 million. 'The total number of mobile phone users is 11.43 million and this represents a penetration rate of more than 163 per cent,' the Ofta spokesman said.
New generations
January recorded 147 terabytes of mobile-data usage
The average usage for each 2.5G and 3G user was: 44MB
