Study: 20% US homes to shun wireline phones by 2009
By Will Park on Thursday, September 18th, 2008 at 5:14 PM PST In Announcements, Research
No more landlines
In an increasingly more connected and wireless world, it just doesn’t make sense to pay for wireline service. Free weekend and night minutes, free mobile to mobile calling (albeit within the same network), and relatively cheap wireless minutes are making landline telephones increasingly less essential to the average household.
The numbers back up that notion. The Nielsen Company notes that over 20 million US homes have done away with those old-timey telephones that plug in to your wall in favor of going completely wireless. Previous studies have shown that wireless-only living is starting to catch on, and this newest bit of research from Nielsen Company predicts that, by 2009, about 1 out of every 5 US homes will be cutting their wireline-tether to traditional telcos and enjoying the freedom of a wireless life.
The move to ditch landlines is an easy way to save a good chunk of change every month, and in these harsh economic times, it makes sense to penny-pinch on non-essential services. The study shows that lower-income households, smaller households, and those continuously on the move are most likely to do away with traditional landline telephones and relying wholly on their mobile phones.
On the other hand, unreliable cellular coverage and sometimes-questionable voice could be potential deal-killers for anyone considering the jump to 100% wireless freedom. The study “Call My Cell: Wireless Substitution in the United States,” indicates that 10% of those that shunned wireline service for a cellphone-only liefstyle changed their mind and decided to go back to their landline telephones.
So, how many of you out there are 100% wireline free?
[Via: RCRNews]
We ditched our landline in 2000 and have not looked back. Cut our voice comm costs in half at the time. It’s dropped further due to extended family jumping on the same network.
I use a wireline to hookup to my DSL service. Because I live in a high rise, I still have to use the wired line as a backup because my mobile frequently has bad reception from my altitude. I may go with a Cable modem if my bandwidth needs increase, but the monthly rate for lease expensive DSL service is significantly lower, almost half as much as that of the lowest cable internet offering, so for now, I’m keeping the land line…