Could 4G kill BT stone dead?

For Internet users in the UK wanting a fast connection at home, there’s cable, BT or, well nothing actually! If you don’t have fibre to your doorstep, or just want a broadband connection you are going to have to pay the BT tollkeeper some £10+ per month.

With 4G rapidly maturing, all this could change very soon. In some countries, 4G operators are rolling out 4G home hubs (combined receiver and wifi routers) in hard to reach rural locations.

This allows customers to quickly and easily install a home broadband connection of up to 10 MB without any need for a telephone line or cables. It begs the question – how long will it be before UK 4G operators follow suit?

One can imagine combined mobile and home packages where customers no longer require a landline at all, a great fit for users with low to medium bandwidth consumption. Equally, as subscription based TV platforms such as Netflix continue to proliferate, more and more people will want freedom not be tied into expensive packages from BT, Sky and Virgin.

For small business users this could be a boon also. Managing home office and mobile costs in one tariff could be very attractive. Particularly great if you live in a remote location where broadband is scarce.

There’s little doubt that BT’s recent foray back into mobile is for good reason. Hungry bandwidth users may always want the highest possible connection speed, but for a large majority – 10 MB is enough. How long will it be before 4G eats BT’s breakfast?