clipped from: www.marketingcharts.com   

More than 20 Million US Phone Users Cut Land Lines, Number Growing

More than 20 million US telephone households (17%) are now “wireless substitutors” - homes without landlines that rely solely on a mobile phone - and one in five households could be wireless-only by year’s end, according to a study by Nielsen Mobile.

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As the US economy tightens and consumers seek ways to cut household spending, many are choosing to eliminate their landline phone service, which costs an average of $40/month per landline household, Nielsen said.

Specific stats about cord-cutters, according to the Nielsen Mobile study (pdf):

  • US cord-cutters tend to have lower income levels: 59% have annual household incomes of $40K or less.
  • Smaller households, with just one or two residents, are more likely to cut the cord than larger households.
  • Moving and changing jobs are the biggest life events associated with cord-cutting.
  • 31% of cord-cutters moved prior to cord-cutting, and 22% changed jobs.