Swedish regulator the PTS has published the results of its annual telephony and internet user survey, in which it found that 6% of respondents had changed internet service provider (ISP) in the last six months – a stable statistic compared with previous years’ surveys. The most common reasons for switching ISP were to get a lower price and higher speed. The proportion of respondents with an additional internet connection method has increased substantially over recent years – with 42% using a mobile phone as a ‘complementary’ access method in 2013 compared to 9% in 2009.
In other statistics, between the years 2011 and 2013, the proportion of mobile phone users who viewed videos increased from 31% to 60%, while the usage of VoIP telephony applications such as Skype or Viber via the mobile handset rose from 12% to 26% of respondents over the same time period. In 2013 47% of respondents said they use internet (IP) telephony via a computer or tablet, while 66% of these users contact only other users of the same VoIP service.
In the fixed telephony segment around 10% of users switched operator in the past year, while of respondents who have a fixed connection, the proportion based on IP telephony increased from 22% in 2011 to 37% in 2013. However, more households with VoIP said they experienced problems compared to households with traditional fixed telephony (46% compared with 21% respectively).
The proportion of telephony users who only have a mobile phone is increasing: In the PTS’s 2009 survey, 15% of respondents used only mobile, while in 2013 the proportion had risen to 30%. Moreover, 60% of this year’s respondents said they were willing to give up their landline at home and only use a cellphone.
Around one in ten respondents had switched mobile provider over the last year.