WASHINGTON-According to figures released by the Consumer Electronic Manufacturers Association, a sector of the Electronics Industry Association, sales of cellular phones rose nearly 20 percent, from 4.7 million units in 1994 to 5.7 million units in 1995. CEMA attributes this upward trend to improved technology, lowered prices and the lure of free or bargain-basement-priced phones. Estimated sales to dealers last year totaled $1.4 billion.
Household penetration of pagers reached 12 percent in 1995, CEMA said, with factory sales reported to be $300 million. Like cellular phone prices, pagers have come down from about $300 per unit in the 1970s to sometimes as low as $50 per unit, with numeric-only service dipping below $10 per month in many markets.
Copies of CEMA’s The Year in Consumer Electronics 95 are available by calling (703) 907-7674.
