LTE Customers Using WiFi for Their Mobile Phones Less

There is very little doubt that more and more companies are working very hard to launch their own LTE networks when it comes to mobile and cellular networking. Part of the reason that so many companies are trying to make this move is because they believe that customers demand the quickest Internet connection they can get when they are using their smartphones. A new study shows that while customers are still using a WiFi connection a majority of the time, LTE customers are using the wireless Internet connections at a lower rate than those that use a 3G connection.

The study looks at data that was gathered over the last eight months and the final conclusion is that LTE is having “a positive impact for the more than 100 mobile operators that have deployed LTE.” The amount of people who are still using WiFi means that the data could actually represent a threat to mobile operators, or it could be something they learn from in the very near future.

The report indicated that LTE subscribers are buying larger data plans from their providers than people who are still operating on 3G networks. Canada was the most obvious example, where 21 percent of LTE subscribers were purchasing 5-10GB plans. Just 14 percent of 3G users were buying the same kinds of plans. 67 percent of LTE users are still doing a majority of their web surfing through WiFi, but that number is actually lower than the 72 percent of data usage being done by 3G users.

The growing number of people who are replacing their WiFi traffic with 4G networks is the biggest reason why cellular providers are moving to LTE networks. While there should be some concern at the loss of data to WiFi providers, the only real solution is to allow unlimited LTE data and most companies aren’t quite willing to go that route just yet.