The recently unveiled fifth Digital Media Index of mobile and internet provider Orange threw up some startling stats. According to the data, the number of dongle subscribers for Orange has gone up by a massive 504 percent, which shows why so many operators are pinning their hopes on mobile broadband as the technology of the future.

This increase, analysts say, is due to mobile broadband’s appeal in terms of flexibility and ease of use (click for info on pay as you go mobile internet), which has the existing costumers hooked on and is attracting more and more of them everyday.

With the increase in the number of subscriptions also came an increase in data usage, which jumped by no less then 4,125 percent. Orange customers’ data usage for mobile broadband now stands at an average 386 terabytes per month. This huge increase within a span of twelve months has taken the number of Orange customers using a dongle or a 3G enabled device to 3.8 million.

Paul Jevon, who is the product, portals and services director at Orange commented on the figures revealed by the Digital Media Index by saying that the mobile data era has clearly been ushered in. He pointed out that costumers are thoroughly enjoying the high quality internet service that mobile broadband has to offer.

Jevon predicts that with an increasing number of mobile applications being launched each month and laptops with embedded connectivity becoming available, there would be an even faster increase in mobile broadband uptake in the months to come.