PRESS RELEASE: Phone Piggy Bank
Written: Saturday 25th April, 2009
BT NO PHONE
NEWS COPY
The humble home phone is on the verge of becoming obsolete as more and more people use social networking sites or mobiles to keep in touch, a study revealed yesterday (Fri).
One in two adults now uses Facebook, Twitter, email or mobile phones instead of a landline to chat to friends and family.
The study of 3,000 people also revealed eight out of ten haven't used their home phone at all in the last seven days.
Six out of ten went as far as to say they were suspicious when the home phone rang because close friends, family and colleagues always rang their mobile.
A spokesman for www.PhonePiggyBank.com, a site that buys and recycles old mobile phones, said: ''These figures show the majority of people have turned their backs on home phones.
''Landlines could die out altogether within ten years the way things are going.
''So few people now pick up a home phone and dial out on it. People much prefer using Facebook, Twitter or instant messaging to keep in touch.
''And they usually do that during the day at their desks. The last thing people want to do when they get home is sit down and spend more time communicating.''
The report revealed the full extent of the decline in usage of the Alexander Graham Bell's 1876 invention.
Ten years ago Brits spent on average 30 minutes using their landline every day, making nine calls a week.
Now they only spend around seven minutes each day chatting on their home phone - making as little as three calls a week.
Four out of ten Forty said they simply didn't have time and one in four also blame high line rental fees.
Half of those polled said they used mobiles because they were more convenient.
The study also found that many Brits nip out of the office at lunchtime to call friends or relatives - with others using hands-free in the car on the way home.
Three out of four said they now only use their landline phone if they're off work or ill.
And four out of ten said they only had a landline because it was a cheap part of a television package or a back-up in case their mobile breaks.
The swing towards mobile phones and electronic communication was also proven in that the average Brit only has two stored numbers in their home phone, compared to 96 on their mobile.
And eight out of ten people have all their important numbers on their mobile phones.
It also emerged 62 per cent of people even use their mobiles when they are home instead of using their landline because they want to use up their free minutes.
And even when the home phone does ring, four out of ten let it go to answer phone because they're wary of who might be calling.
Nearly a quarter of Brits polled use Skype to talk to people in foreign countries.
ENDS
Research conducted by global market research company www.onepoll.com
