The snow may becausing chaos on the roads and preventing people getting to
work, but it has brought out the photographer in the nation’s mobile phone users. It seems we love sending each other pictures of snowy landscapes.
Over three quarters of a million pictures were taken and sent by Vodafone UK
customers on December 1, as wintery conditions took hold across the country.
Vodafone’s figures show that huge numbers of people got out of bed yesterday to
snap the snowy scene outside to send to friends and family. Between 6am and
noon, the volume of picture messages on Vodafone’s network was up 155% on
the same time the previous week. Across the day as a whole, MMS traffic was up
63%.
Britain’s big freeze is also testing the ability of businesses to let staff work
remotely. With Vodafone’s reliable network, people stuck at home have been
able to stay intouch with colleagues and customers despite the weather. Calls
made on Vodafone’s network yesterday were up more than 17%, while people
sent 15% more texts than in the previous week as workers contacted their
offices and worked from home.
Many home-bound workers are relying upon Vodafone’s Sure Signal to boost
their Vodafone 3G mobile signal at home. Usage of Vodafone’s innovative device,
which plugs in to a home broadband line, was up more than a quarter yesterday.
In the morning, usage was up 50%, indicating a very high level of home-working.