Much has been said and written of late about congestion in mobile data networks, a subject brought to the fore by the introduction of the iPhone and its subsequent clones. Indeed, the problem has precipitated a whole new sub-section of the OSS/BSS industry devoted specifically to identifying and controlling wireless broadband data traffic. There is potentially an equally serious problem however in the form of congestion on the signaling channel caused by ‘chatty’ applications and the signaling requirements of increasingly complex services running on smartphones.

Virgin Media, the UK cable broadband operator, announced that it has completed a successful trial delivering speeds of 1.5Gpbs over its existing cable infrastructure. The trial was conducted on a single road in London called Old Street, part of an area that has been dubbed the ‘Silicon Roundabout’ by members of the local tech community known as the ‘TechHub’.

The UK’s public service broadcasting organisation, the BBC, has announced that it is to create an independent mobile coverage map of the UK, working in partnership with network analyst firm Epitiro. The broadcaster has developed an Android app in conjunction with Epitiro that, when downloaded by consumers, will feedback data on the availability and strength of signal at different locations throughout the UK.

US mobile device manufacturer Novatel Wireless, best known for its MiFi 3G and 4G hotspot unit, has struck a partnership with load management firm Consert, to embed 3G modules into an electric grid load management suite.

The number of GSM subscriptions supporting M2M applications is expected to top one billion by 2015, according to equipment vendor Nokia Siemens Networks this week. To meet this demand, NSN has introduced a software suite catering to the use of GSM networks as M2M service platforms.

A new report from analysts Ovum indicates that, despite the capacity of e-prescription technology to fundamentally change the healthcare systems of Europe and America, vendors of the software need to “up their game and improve the design of their systems”.