4G adoption among U.K. businesses is proving sluggish, with cost and a lack of knowledge about its capabilities identified as the biggest hurdles, claimed Vodafone on Thursday.
A survey of 1,200 businesses conducted by YouGov on behalf of Vodafone found that 64% did not have 4G, while 41% currently have no plans to adopt it, with cost ranked as the biggest barrier.
Furthermore, 43% of respondents admitted they have a poor understanding of 4G’s capabilities, while a third of the companies that do not currently have 4G said they did not perceive any benefits it would bring to their business.
"Whilst the perception of cost is still stopping businesses from taking the step towards 4G, the significant knowledge gap of what it can offer U.K. businesses is a challenge," admitted Phil Mottram, U.K. enterprise director at Vodafone UK, in a statement.
Indeed, 41% of those companies without 4G said that their business would benefit from being able to download and transfer large files, and access data-heavy content – the very requirements that 4G can meet.
Among the respondents that have adopted 4G, commonly-cited benefits included data transfer speed, faster responsiveness to customers and suppliers, accessing business apps remotely, and flexible working.
"Despite the growing availability and affordability of 4G devices and services, the lack of a true understanding of the benefits that the technology can bring, as revealed by this survey, is undeniably holding enterprises back from reaping the rewards of introducing 4G to their business," said Mottram.
"This barrier is also preventing businesses from gaining an advantage over their competitors here and abroad in the increasingly competitive global marketplace," he warned.
All of which points to the fact that U.K. businesses need to be educated about what 4G can do for them.
"Vodafone is committed to helping businesses understand how 4G can benefit them based on their business functions, needs and priorities using the greater speed and capacity that 4G can provide," Mottram said.
