JENKINTOWN, Pa.-Wireless spending across all U.S. households during the fourth quarter declined for the first time in almost three years, according to TNS Telecoms’ latest survey.
Average household spending on wireless came in at $50.59 during the quarter. Before that, wireless spending had increased during every quarter since the first quarter of 2002. Spending on wireline services also decreased.
“While the decline in the wireless market is relatively small, it does indicate that the growth in the wireless market is not immune to the pressures of the greater telecom market,” said Charles White, vice president of TNS Telecoms. “As wireless handset growth reaches saturation, wireless providers must continue to offer new services to drive growth and consumer demand.”
The report pegged wireless penetration at 71 percent, about even with the previous quarter. Local and wired long-distance penetration both showed slight declines in penetration.
Verizon Wireless commanded the largest share of wireless households and revenue with 28 percent in both categories. Cingular followed with 19 percent share of households and an 18-percent share of revenues.
According to the report, customers on average spent 32 percent of their total telecom dollars on wireless, followed by video, wired services and the Internet.
TNS Telecoms collects responses through its Bill Harvesting database from 32,000 U.S. households.
