It involves looking into the political, economical, sociocultural and technological factors. Reports are often required to comment upon the drivers of change, these being the forces likely to effect the structure of the industry.
The economy has profound effects on the progress of most industries and many factors come into play when looking at mobile communication. These include, disposable income, unemployment, interest rates, business cycles and inflation. Over the course of the 1990's the continual growth of the national economy helped fuel the market's growth in terms of consumer confidence and thus purchasing. Between 1995 and 2000, disposable income increased by 9% along with a 14% increase in total expenditure. This correlates with the considerable increase in employment also observed during this time. It is, at the same time that we observed the steep increase in overall subscribers to network operators. As well as a steep increase in handset purchase. .
As the economy continues to aid in the success of the market so too does the national geographical coverage. All the networks have continued to extend their coverage even to remote areas of the UK and thus fulfilling the demand of those individuals residing outside of major cities. In the UK there now remains very little area not yet covered by any one of the networks. It is here that we see the convergence of environmental issues since both sociocultural and political factors come into play. In order for coverage to be attained the network must erect a base station often over looking domestic or residential areas. Many groups of people have submitted local government complaints as to their position and often revolt against the network in question. Pressure groups often begin their argument here when demonstrating the harmful effects of mobile communication. Not only do they hang on media speculation of the ill effects of radio waves but also debate that children are at a greater risk of accident at these base station sites.