June 2, 2005
Cutting the Phone Cord Isn't as Popular as Once Predicted
While the number of wireless-only households is increasing -- close to 6% of all U.S. homes at the end of last year, according to Forrester Research Inc. -- the trend isn't accelerating as quickly as many experts predicted. And some consumers are reconsidering their decision to go wireless and are reconnecting to a landline. The WSJ reports.
Consumers cite a variety of reasons for needing a fixed line:
-- Poor cellular coverage
-- The sense of security a home line provides and the fact that many people still rely on landlines for Internet service.
-- Local landline service is also cheap enough
-- Some people are also reluctant to cut the cord because there are no directories for cellular numbers and they want business contacts or long-lost friends to be able to find them.
About 820,000 people did make the move through the end of last year, according to the FCC, but that was only a fraction of what was predicted.
Picture from The Telephone Musem
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