The future of telecoms must put consumers first. Ofcom's general telecoms research examines technological and procedural opportunities across the sector.
Our SMEs and communications services page gathers together research on the availability and experience of communications services for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the UK, defined as businesses with fewer than 250 employees.
Our Large enterprises and communications services page gathers together research on the availability and experience of communications services for large enterprises in the UK, defined as businesses with 250 employees or more.
The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of devices, including everyday consumer devices, that are connected to the internet to provide a range of new services and applications. Our study predicted that IoT connections across 12 industry sectors in the UK will grow to more than 150 million by 2024.
Software defined networking (SDN) allows the replacement of existing network elements by commodity servers controlled by software. In 2014 we commissioned a study from Fujitsu aimed at providing information on SDN activity.
Ofcom reports on complaints from consumers who are dissatisfied with their experience in the telecoms and pay-TV sector. This complaint data is published quarterly. Ofcom also used to publish Telecoms complaints bulletins, and these cover the period of 2010 - 2015.
Ofcom commissioned Futuresight to conduct in-depth qualitative research among consumers to update its understanding of telephone number use in the UK. The final report is now available.
These documents are intended to help consumers make better informed decisions, especially those who are thinking about changing provider or purchasing a new service. We also believe that publication of provider-specific complaint volumes incentivises providers to improve their performance.
