Mobile phone operator hopes free laptop offer will boost broadband uptake

Mobile phone retailer Carphone Warehouse hopes to boost flagging broadband uptake with a free laptop offer launched in September.

The mobile phone retailer’s latest figures announced today show its broadband uptake failed to meet its forecast of 2.5 million despite beating forecasts for mobile phone connections with a 19.2 per cent rise.

The firm failed to meet the forecast for broadband uptake with 89,000 additional broadband users against a target of 103,000.

The offer of a free laptop with each broadband subscription is expected help add 200,000 to 250,000 broadband customers over the second half of the year.

The laptop offering is available with the company’s AOL broadband subscription.

The results also showed the rate at which the firm moved customers to its own network ahead of targets at 55 per cent of the broadband base.

The quarterly results also show the company moved 411,000 customers in the quarter on to its own network to give it an on-net base of 1.4 million or 55 per cent.