The latest Eurobarometer e-Communications Household Survey shows that Europeans are increasingly open to the opportunities offered by new tools and services, as illustrated by the high figures for new Internet subscriptions and the use of the Internet for making voice calls. However, they are still concerned about the costs of going online or making phone calls.
Mobile phones are now everywhere in Europe, but only half are “smart”. Subscriptions for phones that include internet access range from 55% in Sweden, Denmark, the UK, Finland, France and the Netherlands to below 35% in Belgium, Greece, Hungary, Cyprus, Romania, Bulgaria and Portugal. This lower penetration of smart phones can be found in many countries where subscribers limit time spent online because they are worried about the charges. In general, concerns about the costs lead more than half of EU citizens to limit calls from their mobile to national (55%) and international numbers (54%).
