2008 Woodie Awards
Cell phones surge ahead in Iowa
Samantha Miller - The Daily Iowan
Issue date: 2/4/08 Section: Metro
Following a national trend, wireless connections have surpassed landlines in Iowa, according to a new survey - a finding that could directly affect when telephone rates are permitted to increase.
The survey, conducted by the Iowa Utilities Board, reported that the number of wireless connections has reached more than 1.9 million, compared with the nearly 1.5 million landlines as of June 30, 2007. In contrast, landline connections in 2004 stood at 1.6 million, surpassing wireless by nearly 350,000.
The disparity between the numbers may determine whether the Iowa Utilities Board will allow Iowa phone companies to change their rates without the board's authorization, Chairman John Norris, said.
"[The phone companies] are set to go deregulated in July, but we're trying to determine if there's enough competition," he said. "If there isn't, the board will wait until 2010 for the deregulation of the rates to go into effect."
The board will have an open docket to give consumers and companies a change to respond to the survey's data, he said.
"We won't make our determination solely from the survey, but we will open up the results up for comment," Norris said.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Sen. Steve Warnstadt, D-Sioux City, said the 2005 legislation, which mandates the eventual deregulation of Iowa companies, was necessary because landline companies are facing increasing competition. But with the Iowa Utilities Board regulating the rates, it makes it increasingly difficult to compete with wireless phone, Internet, and cable companies, he said.
A prime example of this competition is in the Council Bluffs area, Warnstadt said. There, Cox Cable - an outside state provider that is not regulated by the board - controls 50 percent of the landline market by offering cable, Internet, and phone service, he said.
"Phone companies with regulated rates find it hard to compete," the senator said.
The board's survey cited national trends for the decline in landline connections. These factors included an increase in households using only cell phones and wanting to eliminate the need for additional phone lines for dial-up Internet service - possibly subscribing to high-speed service instead.
UI junior Laura Knox credits convenience and cost for her decision to opt out of a landline connection and use only her cell phone.
"With a cell phone, anyone can reach me anywhere, so it seems pointless to have a landline," she said. "It makes sense that people don't want [landlines] because who wants to pay for a second phone bill when cell phones are just easier."
Even if Iowa telephone companies are allowed to change their rates soon, she said, she doesn't think if it would help the companies. People would most likely stop using landlines all together if prices went up, she said.
The Iowa Board of Utilities is set to decide in June whether deregulation of telephone rates will occur this year.
E-mail DI reporter Samantha Miller at:
samantha-a-miller@uiowa.edu
The survey, conducted by the Iowa Utilities Board, reported that the number of wireless connections has reached more than 1.9 million, compared with the nearly 1.5 million landlines as of June 30, 2007. In contrast, landline connections in 2004 stood at 1.6 million, surpassing wireless by nearly 350,000.
The disparity between the numbers may determine whether the Iowa Utilities Board will allow Iowa phone companies to change their rates without the board's authorization, Chairman John Norris, said.
"[The phone companies] are set to go deregulated in July, but we're trying to determine if there's enough competition," he said. "If there isn't, the board will wait until 2010 for the deregulation of the rates to go into effect."
The board will have an open docket to give consumers and companies a change to respond to the survey's data, he said.
"We won't make our determination solely from the survey, but we will open up the results up for comment," Norris said.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Sen. Steve Warnstadt, D-Sioux City, said the 2005 legislation, which mandates the eventual deregulation of Iowa companies, was necessary because landline companies are facing increasing competition. But with the Iowa Utilities Board regulating the rates, it makes it increasingly difficult to compete with wireless phone, Internet, and cable companies, he said.
A prime example of this competition is in the Council Bluffs area, Warnstadt said. There, Cox Cable - an outside state provider that is not regulated by the board - controls 50 percent of the landline market by offering cable, Internet, and phone service, he said.
"Phone companies with regulated rates find it hard to compete," the senator said.
The board's survey cited national trends for the decline in landline connections. These factors included an increase in households using only cell phones and wanting to eliminate the need for additional phone lines for dial-up Internet service - possibly subscribing to high-speed service instead.
UI junior Laura Knox credits convenience and cost for her decision to opt out of a landline connection and use only her cell phone.
"With a cell phone, anyone can reach me anywhere, so it seems pointless to have a landline," she said. "It makes sense that people don't want [landlines] because who wants to pay for a second phone bill when cell phones are just easier."
Even if Iowa telephone companies are allowed to change their rates soon, she said, she doesn't think if it would help the companies. People would most likely stop using landlines all together if prices went up, she said.
The Iowa Board of Utilities is set to decide in June whether deregulation of telephone rates will occur this year.
E-mail DI reporter Samantha Miller at:
samantha-a-miller@uiowa.edu
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