Sophomore Kevin Kujawski has given up on owning a landlinephone.
Kujawski decided this year he had little need for a regularphone in his house off campus because he made all his calls on hiscell phone instead.
"It's just becoming more of the norm," Kujawski said. "It's moreconvenient that way."
Kujawski is one of 7.5 million Americans who let go of regularphones, opting, like many college students and recent graduates, tocarry only a cell phone.
"I don't make many day calls, and with free night minutes on mycell phone, I make all my calls in the evenings," Kujawski said. "Ilook at it as one less bill I have to pay."
According to the International Telecommunication Union, thenumber of cell phones in the United States today is slowly takingover the number of landline phones. Cell phones now account forabout 43 percent of all U.S. phones, up from 37 percent in2000.
The number of U.S. landline phones has dropped by more than 5million, or nearly 3 percent, since 2000, the FederalCommunications Commission reported earlier this year.
Travis Larson -- a spokesman for the Cellular Telecommunications& Internet Association, a Washington-based industry group --said he believes the 3 percent to 5 percent of cell phone users inAmerica who have cut the cord on owning landline phones have doneso primarily because of cell phones' low cost
"Wireless (phone) prices have fallen 80 percent in the lasteight years, making prices equal to or cheaper than owning a wireline," Larson said. "Many young people just feel there is simply noreason to pay for two phone bills when one covers all theirneeds."
Although many students like Kujawski think owning a cell phoneis the norm, America has been slower than its European counterpartsin adapting to a cellular lifestyle.
Analysts say cell phones started outnumbering traditional phonesin European countries in the late 1990s, because of pricing systemsthat favored wireless communication. In addition, Europeanstypically don't have unlimited local calls on their home phones --an advantage we have here in the United States and a reason whysome students won't give up on holding on to a home phone.
"I make all my local calls on the phone in my dorm so I can savemy cell phone minutes for free long distance calls," LeslieJenkins, sophomore, said. "That's why I'll probably always keep twophones."
Early models of U.S. cell phones were first pitched as carphones, but today's sleek cell phone technology has come a long waysince then.
"I can remember some of the first cell phones because my dadused to have one," Brian Baker, junior, said. "It was real big,bulky, kind of one of those 'Saved By the Bell,' Zach Morris-typephones."
Along with cell phone models, public acceptance of cellulartechnology has changed. Today the United States has almost one cellphone for every two Americans. Sheldon Hochheiser, AT&T'scorporate historian told the Associated Press it took ground linesnearly 100 years to reach that level of penetration.
A recent survey by PriMetrica Inc., a San Diego research group,revealed that more than half of the households polled would give uptheir landline phones if the price were right.
Larson said, with so many cell phone companies on the market,carriers are competing with prices and packages, making itdifficult for some students and families to make a decision basedon cost.
"It's important to remember to comparison shop," Larson said."Whoever happens to be looking to buy a cell phone should firstfigure out their needs as per minutes a month, what time of dayduring the month they'll make the most calls, et cetera. Based onthat, you can then look for the best priced plan to meet yourneeds."
Phone companies say they aren't worried about the shift towireless technology, adapting instead by bundling services andoffering wireless options.
The most used carrier in the area, SBC, offers discountedservice packages to college students, but its wireless option,Cingular Wireless, is offered only in areas of the state withaccess to the 219 area code. The carrier also offers Internetaccess that includes wireless high-speed FreedomLink and the morestandard SBC Yahoo! DSL and dial-up accounts.
Verizon is also making steps to keep its landlines relevant byoffering similar new services, like high-speed DSL Internetconnections that run through phone lines but don't require aseparate line.
Link Hoewing, Verizon's assistant vice president for Internetand technology policy, told the Associated Press he doesn't mindthe growth in cell phone popularity because it represents a,"growth in the whole telecommunications pie."
While some analysts will argue that landlines will continue tobe a part of most Americans' futures, Larson said others tend todisagree.
"There are those people who look at going back to a landlinephone in comparison to going back and using a rotary phone," Larsonsaid. "With that kind of technology behind us now, they claim it'llbe impossible for people in the future to stick with a landlinephone."
The Associated Press contributed to this story
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