mobileu.co.uk

Vodafone trials premium data access for business customers

A new software system is being trialled across Vodafone's Spanish network which offers customers on its business tariff the opportunity to pay a premium for enhanced data access during peak times.

For £44 per month, business customers can ensure connection to the Vodafone network regardless of how congested it is. The move comes amid increased smartphone ownership pushing networks to cope with rising use of bandwidth-heavy mobile apps.

Representatives for the network say non-business mobile customers will not suffer poorer performance as a result of the system, instead benefitting from the ability to exceed their fair-use caps when traffic is light.

"This is about unlocking additional value all along the chain and making sure that all the players can see the benefit," Michel Combes, Vodafone's European head, tells Rethink Wireless.

Derek McManus from rival network O2 has also acknowledged the pressure put on mobile data systems by increased smartphone usage.

"Data on our network has increased twentyfold in the last year alone, and to put this in context, watching a YouTube video on a smartphone can use the same capacity on the network as sending 500,000 text messages simultaneously," he told the recent London FT World Telecoms conference.