eBay has submitted a Mobile Manifesto to the UK government which lays out what can be done to support the country’s mobile phone-based economy. The company describes a rollout of 4G infrastructure as “critical” to the success of the UK’s mobile economy. eBay is increasingly active in the mobile payments market via its Paypal subsidiary. In addition to its manifesto, the company has commissioned research to support its arguments which reveals that users are holding back from activities such as shopping on their mobile phones because of slow network speeds.

eBay’s Mobile Manifesto proposes seven areas of focus that would boost the UK’s mobile economy.  The company is calling for UK telecoms regulator Ofcom to proceed as quickly as possible with an auction of new spectrum that would enable the launch of 4G services. The company’s research among 2,000 users reveals a level of frustration at downloads speeds of the UK’s mobile networks. Nearly half (45 percent) are dissatisfied with network speeds. The research also found that more than one third of the consumers surveyed (36 percent) like to shop on their mobile phones while travelling. Another finding is that 73 percent of users would spend more money via their mobile phones if retailers had mobile-optimised websites. In addition to slow network speeds more than two thirds (68 percent) of consumers are worried about the security of sharing bank details on a mobile connection. Consumers think mobile operators (68 percent) are most responsible for guaranteeing personal security ahead of banks and card providers (63 percent) and retailers (57 percent).