2007 Sees Wireless Spending Outstrip Landlines

prostoalex writes "Each December the Bureau of Labor Statistics prepares a report on telecommunications spending among US households. They analyze the previous year's data, so their most recent release says that in 2006 the average US household spent $542 on their landline, and $524 on their wireless bill. The way the curves are headed, 2007 is likely to become the first year when wireless spending will surpass landline spending. 'To be sure, when corporate cell-phone use is counted, overall U.S. spending surpassed land line spending several years ago, analysts said.'"

Comments

$ spent but how?

[ed.han]

um...duh?

landlines don't give you varying costs, usage limitations, texting plans, ringtones, MP3s, games, yadda yadda yadda. all landlines do is let you talk/fax.

of course mobile phone spending is gonna outstrip it. the real question to me is why did it take this long?

ed

Only calls on landline were telemarkers

[Maxo-Texas]

I reached a point three years ago where the only calls I got on my landline any more were telemarketers.
So I cancelled it and went to a $55 a month plan with rollover minutes. I finally exceeded that in August ($127! Ouchee!) and had to go to a $65 a month plan.

I recently got a $16 a month AT&T line just so I could find my phone when I lose it tho. I leave the ringer off and it is good for 25 outgoing calls. If i get a call when I am off plan that looks like it will be long, I take the call on the land line. This is helpful during the holidays when I am off a lot during off-plan hours.

Re:Guess I'm a meiser

[Hal_Porter]

In Europe we have Pay As You Go SIMs. You buy one for say $30 and it comes with $25 worth of credit and often some bundled text messages. When you run out, you buy a voucher and top it up. The killer thing is that you only pay for calls, there is no monthly fee. Originally calls were more expensive, but competition has forced down prices. And if you have an unlocked phone which cost a bit more than locked ones but are usually available, when you go abroad you just buy a local SIM and avoid roaming charges.

In fact if you read industry internal stuff you find phrases like this
http://www.ovum.com/news/euronews.asp?id=4326

It is likely the increase of prepaid customers contributed to the decline in data ARPU, which was lower year-on-year at 74 Euros (annual figure). ARPU is "Average Revenue Per User". So Pre Pay is cheaper. From the perspective of the telcos, sometimes it is disasterously so

http://www.fin24.co.za/articles/default/display_article.aspx?ArticleId=1518-24_2220175

Vodacom said in a statement that it is the group's policy to disconnect inactive prepaid SIM cards after seven months without a revenue generating activity on the Vodacom network. So the ARPU for some pre paid customers was literally zero. Presumably there's some cost to keeping them connected, so Vodafone was making a loss.

Gave up Cellphone, long live landlines

[Ralph Spoilsport]

I had both for a long time. But I found the expense of the cell exceeded its usefulness and downsides.

The McLuhan inversion of the cellphone is "the tether" and I intensely dislike being at everyone's beck and call, and PAYING for the "privilege", I ditched the cell.

If you want me - land line at either my home or office. If it's less urgent, then email me. If it requires instant attention and I'm on the clock, then IM me. If I'm not responding, instantly, then perhaps I'm TAKING A SHIT AND WANT TO BE LEFT ALONE.

A cell is no guarantee of access anyway - when I did have it, it was usually turned off.

Then there's the downside. My brother ditched landline for cell. We have a conversation. He walks to the otherside of his apartment and he gets dropped. Last night I call a friend who also ditched landline. The conversation w nt som t ng li e th s. Garbage. I was able to get enough to him to tell him to email me with his questions, oh, and ditch the fucking cellphone.

with my landline, I have infinite long distance all over north america. I have DSL and web hosting rolled into it, and with my "extra services" I think I pay around CDN$100 a month.

And I'm a lot happier being "less accessible".

RS

There are some positive aspects to land lines

[roystgnr]

On the one hand, you have to make and receive all your phone calls from the same place, but on the other hand you get to decide elections. They say one vote can't make a difference, but that doesn't apply to election polls where there's only five landline-owners left to poll and the other four are 90 year olds planning on voting for Roosevelt.