By The Numbers: Voice, Video, Data In The U.K.
There are more than 63 million people in the U.K., split pretty evenly between male and female, and with the majority aged between 16 and 64. Eighty percent of the population lives in urban areas, and more than 8 million live in London.
In terms of wireless usage, the U.K. ranked 14th (as of 2010, using Central Intelligence Agency numbers) compared with the rest of the world, and 10th in wireline usage. As far as Internet adoption is concerned, the commonwealth ranked 15th.
Ofcom, the U.K.’s equivalent to the Federal Communications Commission, also keeps track of such information, in even more depth. The following grid presents a graphic snapshot of voice, video and data usage in the U.K. today.
|
Internet |
|
|
Number of fixed residential broadband connections |
18.4 million (3Q11) |
|
Proportion of adults with broadband in the U.K. (fixed + mobile) |
76 percent (4Q11) |
|
Proportion of adults with mobile broadband in the U.K. |
14 percent (4Q11) |
|
Average broadband speed in the UK |
7.6 Mbit/s (November 2011) |
|
Proportion of adults who use social networking sites |
51 percent |
|
Proportion of people who use their mobile handsets to access the Internet |
34 percent |
|
Number of mobile broadband (dongles/PC datacards) subscriptions |
5 million (3Q11) |
|
Landline/mobile phones |
|
|
Number of residential fixed landlines |
23.8 million (3Q11) |
|
Number of fixed landlines in the U.K., including ISDN |
33.2 million fixed lines (3Q11) |
|
Proportion of adults who personally own/use a mobile phone |
91 percent (4Q11) |
|
Proportion of adults who live in a home that has cut the cord (no wireline service) |
13 percent (4Q11) |
|
What percentage of mobile subscriptions in the U.K. are contract? |
48 percent (3Q11) |
|
Number of text messages sent per mobile subscription per month |
154 (3Q11) |
|
Digital television |
|
|
Number of homes with digital TV |
94 percent (4Q11) |
|
Number of TVs in the U.K. |
60 million (year-end 2011) |
|
Claimed take-up of HDTV service |
42 percent (3Q11) |
|
Number of minutes of TV people aged 4+ watch each day |
242 (all viewers 4+, average in 2011) |
|
Proportion of homes with network channels on any set |
50 percent (4Q11) |
|
Proportion of homes with network channels on their main sets |
35 percent (4Q11) |
