Sprint: mobile usage, spending remains strong in tough economy

Bernard Cole
iApplianceWeb
(12/23/08, 8:15 AM GMT)

San Francisco, Ca. – According to a new study sponsored by Sprint, 72 percent of respondents decreased their overall household spending, with 22 percent spending the same and only six percent reporting an increase in spending.

While watching their finances closely, 83 percent of respondents still choose to own a mobile phone, and more than half (56 percent) say they are “inseparable” from their mobile phone throughout the day.

According to the study, some of the ways in which consumers are cutting costs include: 1) saving by disconnecting their landline phone service and by switching to family and set-price mobile plans; 2) switching mobile carriers for the right amount of savings; and, 3) using their mobile phones to get the best deals while holiday shopping.

The Sprint Survey on Mobile Value showed that nearly one-third (32 percent) of respondents are likely to eliminate their landline service and rely solely on a mobile phone in order to save money.

Eighteen percent of respondents already do not have landline phone service at their home. More than one third of mobile phone owners (36 percent) say a mobile phone is the only phone they will ever need. When asked why they would give up their landline phone, three-quarters of respondents (76 percent) said they would disconnect in order to save money.

Almost three-quarters (72 percent) of respondents are likely to use family plans for mobile phones in order to save money. Sixty-seven percent of mobile phone owners have more than one mobile phone in  their family/household, and of them, 78 percent have combined into a family plan or would consider it to save money.

To learn more, go to www.sprint.com.

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