Are Cell Phones Replacing Landlines?

It's not uncommon for a household to bypass landline phones and use cell phones as the primary means of communication inside and outside the home. In fact, U.S. households are forecasted to have spent more on cell phone services than landline services this year.

According to recent statistics released by the U.S. Labor Department, the average annual household cell phone spending was $524 in 2006, compared with the $542 that the average family spent on landline phones.

This year's numbers indicate that consumers spent more on their cell phone services than landline services. Analyst estimates show that there are about 170 million landlines in use nationwide, while there are nearly 250 million cell phones in use. This includes both business and residential users.