Wireless Gaining At the Expense Of Wire-Line Service

By Antone Gonsalves, TechWeb News

An increasing number of people are using their cellular phones for long-distance calls, giving them one more reason to dump their wire-line telephone service. An annual survey of U.S. households on the use of communications services has found that cellular phone users today are making 60 percent of their long-distance calls on their handsets, market researcher The Yankee Group said Wednesday. That number has been increasing steadily year over year, with 35 percent in 2002 and 43 percent in 2003.

«We’re seeing long distance as a standalone industry disappearing,» Yankee analyst Kate Griffin said.

Wireless carriers offering unlimited plans, which include long distance, is a key driver behind the trend, Griffin said. As a result, consumers are given one more reason to use their wired home phones less.

«People are using more and more minutes year over year, and as they use their cellular phones more, their replacing traditional land lines,» Griffin said.

So far, only about 3.5 percent of U.S. households have opted to dump their traditional phone service, a move that’s mostly prevalent among young adults and singles. Among the reasons for still having a home phone is for a data line to the computer and having one number to reach the family.

To prevent the replacement of wire-line phones by cellular phones, however, carriers will have to offer both services as a bundle, and begin integrating the services. Carriers, for example, could eventually offer one telephone number, access to email and voice mail and free calling to the home number by a cellular phone.

«You want to begin to connect wireless and wire-line usage, so there is a consumer perception of value (in having both),» Griffin said.

Bundling of services is certainly a plus among many consumers, the annual Yankee survey of about 2,100 households found. The percentage of households interested in having a single provider for all their communications need has risen steadily from 38 percent in 2002 to 49 percent this year.

This is good news for telephone carriers and cable operators, which have been selling packages that include high-speed Internet connections, telephone service and TV programming at a price that’s less than if the consumer bought each product separately. The idea is to provide so many services that the customer will find it too difficult to switch to a competitor.

«One way to build loyalty is to tie the products together and then build connections between the products,» Griffin said.

Consumers who have bought their wire-line telephone service and their high-speed Internet connection in a package from a single carrier are as much as 40 percent less likely to leave than the average U.S. household, The Yankee Group found.

AT&T Wireless Lowers Roaming Prices for Europe’s Hottest Summer Destinations
Company Also Announces Savings for Customers Who Call Abroad from the U.S.

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A new promotion is letting summer travelers to Europe enjoy all-time low prices when they stay in touch using AT&T Wireless (NYSE: AWE — News).

Customers enrolled in AT&T Wireless’ Discounted International Roaming plan can now talk on their wireless phones for just $.89 per minute while in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland -- an additional $.10 per-minute reduction off the plan’s already discounted pricing and a $.40 per-minute savings for customers not already enrolled in the plan. The $.89 per-minute rate also applies to calls made or received in Greece -- also a substantial $.40 per-minute reduction off the usual rate.

«AT&T Wireless makes it easy and affordable for travelers to stay in touch, whether they’re visiting Big Ben, the summer Olympics, or points in- between,» said Dave Albright, vice president for international marketing at AT&T Wireless. «The hassles of hotel phones, payphones, and calling cards are a thing of the past.»

«We’re offering travelers to Europe a great price on phone calls, the simplicity of using their own wireless phone for those calls, and the convenience of staying reachable at their own phone number,» Albright added.

AT&T Wireless will waive one month’s service charge for customers who enroll in Discounted International Roaming before September 30, 2004, when this promotion expires. The monthly service charge for Discounted International Roaming is $5.99 and entitles customers to sharply reduced per- minute rates for calls placed and received while visiting more than 20 of the most-traveled European countries. Customers enrolled in the plan also receive discounted rates for calls made from AT&T Wireless’ owned network in the U.S. to other countries.

On a related note, another new promotion from AT&T Wireless offers additional savings to consumers who frequently call abroad from the U. S. AT&T Wireless will waive one month’s service charge of $3.99 for customers who enroll in the company’s Enhanced Discounted International Dialing plan before October 28, 2004. Enhanced Discounted International Dialing offers some of AT&T Wireless’ lowest rates ever on calls to more than 220 countries and territories from the company’s owned network in the U.S. — for example, a per- minute rate of $.06 for calls to the United Kingdom and Taiwan; $.07 per minute for calls to Japan, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Spain; and $.09 per minute for calls to Mexico and Hong Kong.

AT&T Wireless has long been a leader in international calling and roaming. In fact, the readers of Business Traveler magazine selected AT&T Wireless as provider of the «Best International Cell Phone Service» for three years in a row. AT&T Wireless customers with a compatible GSM/GPRS phone can place voice calls in more than 140 countries and access data services, such as email and picture messaging, in more than 60 countries. The company also offers dedicated round-the-clock support for customers who are abroad and have questions about placing international calls.

Customers can sign up for Discounted International Roaming by calling 866- 293–4634. They can sign up for Enhanced Discounted International Dialing by calling 800–888–7600 or 611 from their AT&T Wireless phone. Consumers can also enroll in either plan at their local AT&T Wireless store and find further information about the company’s international services at [ >>> ]

Note: As with domestic wireless calls, customers use airtime when calling to or from international locations. If a customer calls abroad while roaming in the U.S., roaming charges may also apply. In addition, certain calls to wireless devices abroad may incur a per-minute surcharge. After the Discounted International Roaming promotion expires on September 30, 2004, the usual low per-minute roaming rates will apply.

About AT&T Wireless

AT&T Wireless (NYSE: AWE — News) is the second-largest wireless carrier, based on revenues, in the United States. With 21.737 million subscribers as of June 30, 2004, and revenues of more than $16.8 billion over the past four quarters, AT&T Wireless delivers advanced high-quality mobile wireless communications services, voice and data, to businesses and consumers, in the U.S. and internationally.

Forward Looking Statements

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For a more detailed description of the factors that could cause such a difference, please see AT&T Wireless’ filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the information under the heading «Additional Factors That May Affect Our Business, Future Operating Results and Financial Condition» and «Forward Looking Statements» in its quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed on August 6, 2004.