China leads the world in mobile data

Cost is by far the biggest bar to using mobile data services

China is leading the world in mobile data use, while US citizens use it least, according to a new study.

Global research company GMI surveyed over 1,000 people in eight countries in December, concluding that 97 per cent of Chinese mobile phone users download data, compared to fewer than half of American users.

Cost was by far the biggest bar to using mobile data services. Some 85 per cent of respondents would use more data services if they were less expensive, and nearly half would use such services if it was possible to try the applications first.

Ease of use was not as big an issue; fewer than a third of users had problems downloading applications due to complexity or poor data speed.

"China is an enormous market of advanced users," said Rachel Lashford, an analyst at Canalys. "Once the Chinese government approves its version of 3G, take-up will increase still further. People are getting hooked on having a connected device."

The most popular downloads for UK users are news alerts (70 per cent of users) followed by sports clips (50 per cent).

Weather alerts are most popular with Chinese users, and over a third now use their phone to tell the time.

The US and Italy tied for most the common users of mobile pornography, at over one in 10 downloading adult material to their mobiles.

"It is clear that there are real variances across geographies when it comes to how people use mobile devices to consume data," said Michel Quazza, chief executive at SurfKitchen, which commissioned the survey.

"It is also quite apparent that consumers across all geographies want more transparency of mobile data costs, as well as a personalised and easy-to-use service."