U.S. HANGING UP ON LANDLINES

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released early estimates from the January-June 2010 National Health Interview Survey. While the survey collects information on health status, health-related behaviors and heal care utilization, it also collects information about household telephones and whether or not anyone in the home has a wireless phone. The trend that has developed over the last few years is that people are ditching their landline phones in favor of wireless service only.

Statistics collected from the first six months of this year show that more than one in four households (26.6%) did not have a landline phone, but did have at least one wireless phone in the home. That number shows growth of 2.1% when compared to the last six months of 2009. The survey also found that one in six U.S. homes (15.9%) received all or almost all of their calls on wireless phones even if they had a landline in the home.

When you dig into the survey’s numbers even more you discover that this survey marks the first time that the number of adults in wireless-only homes have exceeded those in landline households when looking at any range. More than half of adults (51.3%), ages 25-29 years, live in wireless-only households. Another interesting statistic, and one with the highest prevalence rate for population subgroups examined, showed that two in three adults (69.4%) living only with an unrelated adult roomate, had just a wireless phone in the household. Considering the pain it is to split up a landline bill, let alone take messages for a roomate, I think many of us can understand why.

The trend of U.S. homes going wireless-only will no doubt continue in the years to come and helps demonstrate why many telecommunication companies fought hard to add wireless service to their menu of products so that they might retain customers ditching traditional landlines. [Geek]