Free Public WiFi Might Tempt Consumers to Switch 4G Mobile Operator

A new Arqiva commissioned survey of 2,000 UK residents has explored how consumers perceive public WiFi services vs 3G and 4G cellular network connectivity. The study found that almost two thirds (58%) of 4G subscribers would consider swapping to a different network provider if they supplied public WiFi access as part of their subscription package.

The related report – Public Wi-Fi in a 4G World – also claims that the move to 4G has not reduced demand for public WiFi. Indeed the vast majority of respondents continue to use public WiFi networks (76%) and 4G subscribers are only marginally less likely to do so than others (75%).

Interestingly consumers also named Mobile Network Operators (MNO) as the “most obvious” providers of public WiFi networks (59%), even though most of the UK’s hotspots come from predominantly fixed line focused operators like BT and Sky (The Cloud).

Nicolas Ott, Managing Director of Telecoms at Arqiva, said:

“With constantly connected, digital lives, we’re now demanding the ability to stay online whenever and wherever we are. As the variety of high bandwidth connectivity options increases, we wanted to understand more about consumer attitudes to the costs versus availability between public WiFi and cellular networks.

Revealing the clear value consumers still attach to public WiFi provision, the results offer some interesting insights for Mobile Network Operators. Aside from indicating a potential churn opportunity, they also named mobile operators as the most obvious provider of public WiFi networks (59%). Operators should therefore look at the connectivity bundle packages they can offer their customers in order to further increase brand loyalty and sales.”

Apparently the top three reasons for using public WiFi are because 1) It’s free (56%), 2) Lack of mobile signal and 3) It’s faster than mobile data. Overall some 96% of respondents have access to a WiFi capable device, usually via Smartphones.