In the mobile world, some of the biggest stories of the year had a distinctly political flavour to them. BT had its takeover of EE waived through at the start of 2015, but the concurrent acquisition of O2 by Three was denied due to competition concerns. The consequences of these two regulatory decisions are yet to be fully felt or understood, however, there is no doubt this story will continue into 2017 and beyond.
Elsewhere, 4G mobile networks continued to roll out not just around the UK, but around the world, and just as the movie Field of Dreams proved, if you build it, they will come: 2016 saw a surge in data traffic across mobile networks as more people streamed video, music and gaming content onto what are now, for many, becoming primary devices, supplanting the traditional PC.
Meanwhile, the ongoing development of 5G mobile networking standards, which most authorities on the subject now agree will likely begin to be deployed at scale in or around 2020, saw data transmission rate records smashed several times this year, with Chinese networking powerhouse Huawei among those pouring research and development funding into the new technology.
Here are Computer Weekly\u2019s top 10 mobile stories of 2016.<\/p>\n