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Wi-Fi: Revenge of the Fixed Line Network IV–Cable King of Wireless Data? 

Throughout 2012 the Jefferies Global TMT Research team has led the discussion on the impact of Wi-Fi in the telecommunications sector. Recent data suggests that Wi-Fi is clearly the preferred vehicle for wireless data consumption: iPhone users put four times the data traffic on Wi -Fi versus mobile; public Wi-Fi usage is up 240% year-over-year and 52% of traffic is on phones/tablets versus 70% on laptops one year ago. The team’s view is that Wi-Fi is developing the attributes of a substitute product and thus may eventually exert price pressure on the core product (cellular data) and provide a mechanism for consumers to circumvent operators’ efforts to encourage them to trade up to higher-tier data tariffs.