Personal use of cell phones increases significantly among Canadian population

The percentage of Canadians who use their cell phones primarily for personal purposes is up significantly in the last two years, while those using cell phones mostly for business reasons has dropped dramatically over the same period, according to new research. Conducted by Decima Research Inc. last month for Report on Wireless, the data show that personal use has jumped nearly 20 percentage points, while business use has experienced an equally dramatic drop to single-digit levels. The numbers were collected as part of a survey that also revealed Canadian cell phone users’ relatively high level of support for the introduction of wireless local number portability (RoW, Oct. 15/02). The last publicly available data on usage was conducted in 2000, and revealed that 46 per cent of respondents used their cell phone primarily for personal reasons. However, the new survey results indicate that nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) of survey respondents used their cell phone mostly for personal purposes. Conversely, 10 per cent of respondents said they used their cell phone primarily for business use, a dramatic drop from 23 per cent in 2000 (see chart). During this period, the overall cell phone subscriber base grew by almost four million subscribers from approximately 7.6 million to 11.2 million, according to subscriber results of the four national wireless carriers. According to the research, age and income are significant factors in determining usage patterns. It should come as no surprise that the number of primarily business users increases with age and income levels. The 18-24 age category registered primarily business usage at five per cent, while 14 per cent of those aged 45-54 indicated primarily business use. On the income side, primarily business usage jumps from six per cent for those making less than $40,000 annually to 18 per cent for the above $100,000 annual income segment. The same holds true for primarily personal usage, as it declines dramatically (more than 30 per cent) with income levels. The sub-$40,000 income group rates mostly personal usage at 75 per cent, while only 42 per cent of those with incomes above $100,000 use their cell phone for primarily personal reasons. It should also be noted that equal business-personal use increases by 20 per cent points from the lowest income bracket to the highest. But generally, the number of Canadians who indicate that they use their cell phone for personal and business purposes equally is on the decline. While not as dramatic as the decline in mostly business usage, it is still a sharp drop from 30 per cent in 2000 to 26 per cent in 2002. A correlation between income and equal use is evident as the percentage rates increased from 18 per cent for lower income earners (less than $40,000) to nearly 40 per cent for those earning more than $100,000 annually. Even though the actual number of wireless subscribers in Canada has grown by nearly four million since the second quarter of 2000, it is difficult to understand why business usage is in such decline. There are numerous factors that might be coming into play, but whatever the cause, business usage has declined significantly. The latest research was collected through the Decima Express, a national omnibus telephone survey conducted monthly by Decima Research. It was completed between September 13 and September 22. Results of the survey are based on a sub-sample size of 918 Canadians who own and use a cell phone. The results for a survey of this size can expect to provide results accurate to within +/- 3.2%, 19 times out of 20. For more information on the survey or to purchase an executive summary and/or the full research data, please contact Publisher Mario Mota at (613) 230-1984 or mmota@decima.ca.

Personal use of cell phones increases significantly among Canadian population

News | 10/28/2002 5:00 am EST

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