The ubiquity of mobile and the rising number of low-cost smartphones means that data services will be primarily accessed via mobile, especially in emerging markets, according to the 2011 Social Impact of Mobiles (SIM) report released by Vodafone Group. The report concludes that extending the reach and capability of mobile networks is the most effective way to provide affordable internet access to the majority of people in emerging markets. It argues that the current policy of on significant investment in fibre access networks is unsustainable given the cost of deployment in rural areas. It calls for greater efforts to be made to boost the amount of content and services valued by users as a way to drive data services demand and increase business opportunities. The report is co-funded by Vodafone and the World Wide Web Foundation as part of a series of studies on the socio-economic impact of mobile. It provides considerable evidence to suggest that extending data services to as many people as possible will deliver considerable economic and social benefit.
