While 79 percent of households in the UK owned a mobile phone in 2006-2007, there were marked differences in ownership between the regions, according to figures just released by the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS).
In Northern Ireland only 51 percent owned a mobile telephone, and in Wales, only 54 percent. Mobile-shunning households in Northern Ireland instead spent the most on cigarettes each week at £7.70 (88 percent higher than the UK average of £4.10), with Scotland second at £5.50.
Ownership was highest in the South West of England and the East Midlands, at 85 percent of all households.
In its report 'The Communications Market Report 2008' Ofcom states that at the end of 2007 four in five households now have both a mobile phone and a landline phone - and the proportion of households relying on mobile phones exclusively was 11 percent. 86 percent of adults own a mobile phone.
40 percent of voice call minutes were made from mobile phones.
99 billion minutes of outbound calls were made in 2007. The average outbound calls per mobile connection rose to over 116 minutes per month in 2007.
44 percent of UK adults use text messaging on a daily basis in Q1 2008. The UK consumer is sending an average of 67 text messages a month per mobile connection with usage increasing by 32 percent in 2007.
The number of 3G subscriptions grew by 4.7 million to 12.5 million at the end of 2007.
Yesterday it was reported that the number of Brits using Mobile broadband has risen by 25 percent to 7.3 million between Q2 and Q3 this year, says Nielsen Online.
