Gov’t study shows wireless substitution growing

New government data suggests wireless substitution continues to rise, a trend that could become a bigger factor in telecom policymaking.
The preliminary results of the National Health Interview Survey, conducted under the auspices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, indicates that one in six American homes, or nearly 16%, had only mobile phones in the second half of last year. Moreover, according to the initial research findings, more than one out of every eight homes, or 13.1 %, received all (or nearly all) calls on cellphones even though there was a landline telephone at the residence.
The survey revealed that wireless usage varied considerably depending on demographic characteristics.
“[T]his report is the first to demonstrate that the number of adults living in wireless-mostly households in the U.S. is growing and is nearly equal to the number of adults living in wireless-only households,” the report states. “If the prevalence of wireless-mostly households continues to grow, and if adults living in wireless-mostly households rarely (if ever) answer their landline telephones, landline telephone surveys may experience increasing rates of non-response.”
The wireless substitution survey was led by Stephen Blumberg and Julian Luke of the National Center of Health Statistics’ Division of Health Interview Statistics at the CDC.