How mobile phone blackspots are costing North West companies billions

That’s the staggering claim made by infrastructure provider Freshwave, which has revealed dramatic new survey results. Their Mobile Connectivity ROI Index reveals that poor indoor mobile connectivity is costing North West organisations an estimated £12bn annually.

They also say that 83 per cent of organisations experience daily connectivity issues and that five minutes of poor connectivity per day translates to a 1 per cent annual loss in productive time.

The findings come ahead of Connected North, where Freshwave will be contributing to discussions on how best to deliver the Government’s Northern Powerhouse digital strategy - aimed at using technology to improve people’s lives and help businesses and communities thrive. Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, has also made economic productivity growth a priority amid widely-flagged efforts to avoid further tax rises.

Findings

The vast majority (83 per cent) of the participating organisations reported poor current indoor connectivity causes daily disruptions. As a result, 68 per cent of respondents expect their connectivity budgets to increase over the next two years as they look to improve indoor coverage to address this problem.

Simon Frumkin, CEO of Freshwave, commented: "The Northwest economy simply cannot afford to lose billions every year. That is why massive investments have been made in digital infrastructure over the past decade. We must now build upon this platform and ensure seamless mobile connectivity extends to wherever people want to use it. The prize will be £8bn of added value for Northwestern organisations. So they are right to anticipate boosting investment in mobile technology over the next two years.

“Working alongside the mobile network operators, we’re at the forefront of helping organisations reap the full economic benefits of this decade-long investment. 4G/5G connectivity is going to enable transformative technologies across every sector, benefiting organisations and the economy both today and for years into the future."

UK-wide picture

Across the UK, the public sector reports being the most affected by indoor connectivity dead zones, losing £46bn annually, with potential gains of £33bn not being realised. The professional and financial services sector follows, losing £24bn annually, with a potential gain of £17bn from better indoor mobile connectivity.