Comreg recently issued its quarterly report on revenues in the communications sector for July to September 2009.

Unsurprisingly, overall revenues are in decline, though according to Comreg, broadband subscriptions increased in the third quarter of 2009.

Unfortunately, this was mainly driven by people choosing to take up mobile broadband products or midband as they are often described.

Why anyone would want 'dialup on steroids' is beyond me, but the mobile phone companies seem to have a lot of people fooled on this one.

Interestingly, according to the report, total voice traffic minutes declined by 0.5% in the quarter to over 4.5 billion minutes. Mobile minutes still represent the majority (56%) of these minutes.

In addition, mobile phone average revenue per user declined to €37.88 per month in the quarter. In addition, SMS volumes fell for the first time quarter on quarter by 4.1%.

Looks like the recession is having an effect on how we use our mobile phones. And quite right too. The phone companies need to cut their tariffs during this economic phase. I still think most of the bill pay price points are far too expensive. Bill payers are also often ringfenced into long-term contracts of 12-18 months. There should be no contracts and more freedom of movement for users.

With the prices these companies are charging, their networks should be made of gold masts and cabling. And yet the mobile voice network in this country is subpar. Even in Dublin, the amount of dropped calls or difficulty in hearing the other person (not a sound issue – a connection one), is laughable. If we boast of wanting to have one of the best broadband infrastructures coupled with a mythic, so-called 'knowledge economy' then we have an awful long way to go, particularly when our voice network is not up to scratch.

Thank god for old fashioned landlines!

Dell shows its green credentials

Readers with children will probably have heard their little tykes ambling round the house singing: "Recycle, recycle it's a wonderful thing to do – we're saving the planet for you and you and you." Corporations once very quiet on the subject are now only too willing to fly their recycling flag and tell the world what a wonderful 'green' company they are.

One such IT giant espousing all things environmental is Dell, which recently issued a useful and timely reminder on recycling those electronic goodies.

With new laptops, PCs, iPods and other gadgets and gizmos having been bought at Christmas, this leaves a lot of now obsolete electronic goods piled up somewhere in the house. Some people will do their civic duty, and bring them to a recycling centre capable of receiving them, while others will chance their arm and dump them into the black bin. You know who you are!

So Dell has issued a few guidelines to help prick your conscience and lead you down the path of recycling righteousness.

1. Look for advice in the product's literature. See if the manufacturer has a recycling programme and a local agent. For instance, with printing cartridges many manufacturers include envelopes to freepost the empty ones back to the factory.

2. Make yourself self aware. Understand the impact that not recycling your technology has on the environment. Every year, the amount of electrical refuse created in Ireland is enormous. Levels of electronic garbage grow even higher at Christmas, and with much of this ending up in landfill, it raises concerns about the risk of toxic waste.

3. Donate. Gift your old tech to charity or just give it away via sites such as www.recyclefree.ie. You might not want it anymore but you would be surprised how many others would.

4. Don't forget the packaging and wrapping paper. Okay, these days, what with the green bin and all, it is easier than ever to dispose of paper. Nevertheless, it is estimated that over Christmas as much as 83 square kilometres of wrapping paper ended up in Irish rubbish bins. After the excitement of ripping open the present waiting for you under the tree, take care to recycle all of the packaging responsibly, instead of throwing it in the bin.

In fairness to Dell, it has been one of the brightest lights in relation to the whole IT recycling hoo-ha. While many companies are now jumping aboard the green agenda (only because for the main part it brings them cost savings) Dell has been working at it since before it became trendy. Way back in 2004 it became one of the first companies in the IT sector to launch a product-recycling goal.

So despite the wrong turns and knocks the company has taken in the past few years, it is certainly a leader when it comes to recycling. So its advice is well taken.