Nearly 60 Percent of America's Wireless Users Say Wireless Phones Have Changed the Way They Communicate - Industry Trend or Event

Cambridge Telcom Report, August 16, 1999

Love 'em or hate 'em, wireless phones are everywhere. The nearly 80 million wireless phones percolating throughout the United States are transforming the way we talk to one another. And in the process, a seismic shift in cultural sensibilities is underway, according to findings of "Flash From the Wireless Front: Fun Facts About Wireless Users," a national survey commissioned by PrimeCo Personal Communications, L.P. exploring the personal communication habits and behaviors of wireless phone users.

The ubiquity of the wireless phone is rewriting rules about when we talk, where we talk and what we talk about. With wireless phones rapidly becoming our everyday phones, we're talking more often, to more people and blending work and personal lives. Such a sweeping change is not without its unsettling elements. The Fun Facts survey highlights the mix of emotions Americans have when it comes to wireless phones -- from the thrill of instant contact to the anxiety of being too accessible.

Is all this talk just idle chatter? Not according to the Fun Facts survey. Nearly 60 percent of those surveyed said their wireless phone has changed the way they communicate. Almost a quarter of America's wireless users (and over a third of PrimeCo subscribers) already consider their wireless phone their "everyday" phone, and 20 percent of those surveyed are ready to toss their old-fashioned landline phones. The vast majority of those surveyed, 80 percent, consider their wireless phones "a lifesaver."

"Because we take them with us everywhere, wireless phones are being integrated into everyday life in ways impossible for landline phones," said Sharon Jenkins, PrimeCo's vice president of marketing. "The Fun Facts survey provides our first glimpse of how wireless users report their phones have changed the way they communicate."

According to survey data, America's wireless users are talking on their phones while giving birth, putting Dial-A-Prayer on speed dial and paging themselves to get out of sticky social situations. They're making more spontaneous calls just to hear the voice of that special someone, getting closer to their sweeties and calling their families more often. They're even calling from the bathroom with shocking frequency. The Fun Facts survey gathered the complete scoop on wireless usage -- the good, the bad and the just plain strange. Listen closely and you'll hear a telling tale about our love/hate relationship with this enormously popular communications tool:

The Good -- 40 percent of those surveyed think their wireless phone is the best way to squeeze their "real life" into their work life. -- Over a quarter of America's wireless users think they have closer relationships with their sweeties now that they own a wireless phone. -- Nearly 40 percent of those surveyed call people they love just to hear the sound of their voice. -- 38 percent of wireless users call their parents or siblings every day.

The Not-So-Good -- About a third of those surveyed think their wireless phone makes them too easy to reach. -- 20 percent of wireless users admit to being "busted" by background noise that gave away their true location. -- Nearly a quarter of those surveyed confess to using their phone to get out of "sticky" social situations. (Some by simply "pretending" to be on the phone; others call their own pagers.) -- Nearly a quarter of us admit to repeatedly (some might say obsessively) hitting redial until we complete a call. -- About 20 percent of wireless users cannot live without their wireless phones.

The Odd -- Almost 15 percent of America's wireless users talk on the phone while in the bathroom ... and 10 percent will even use the phone in the public restroom. -- 2 percent of wireless users surveyed have even nicknamed their wireless phones; Butt Phone, Big Daddy, Baby, Fancy, Tweetie and Top Dog were among the mish-mash of monikers.

About the Survey Flash From the Wireless Front: Fun Facts About Wireless Users is a periodic survey commissioned by PrimeCo Personal Communications, L.P. to explore the personal communication habits and behaviors of wireless phone users. This national survey, conducted by Crescent Research, Inc. from June 7 through July 5, 1999, consists of a national telephone survey of 1,500 wireless users. The margin of error for this study is /- 2.5 percent at the 95 percent confidence level. These results were supplemented with a national Internet study of 430 wireless users polled from June 7 through June 25, 1999.

PrimeCo Personal Communications, which is owned by Vodafone AirTouch (NYSE: VOD) and Bell Atlantic (NYSE: BEL), provides digital wireless service in more than 35 major cities in Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin. The company has PCS licenses covering about 60 million potential customers in 10 major trading areas and has 3,500 employees. At the end of the second quarter 1999, PrimeCo had over 1.2 million subscribers. PrimeCo phones and service are sold through the company's 115 stores and kiosks, its business-to-business direct sales force, over 2,300 indirect retailers and its toll-free telephone sales line 1-800-PRIMECO. The address for PrimeCo's Digital News Room is http://news.primeco.com.