Phone calls at home - Landline telephones are being used less and less
The landline phone continues to lose significance. According to a survey by the comparison portal Verivox, only 16.1 percent of home landline phone users reach for the receiver daily. That's 2.6 percentage points less than in the same survey a year ago.
Other interviewees did not call daily, but at least several times a week or several times a month. Thirty percent of the 1030 interviewees reported that they no longer use a landline phone at all. According to the survey, landlines remain important primarily for older people.
The loss of significance is also evident in the fact that every fifth interviewee with a landline connection could not recall the phone number by heart. The development reflected in the survey matches a survey by the Federal Network Agency, which found that there were 20 percent fewer call minutes from landlines in Germany last year compared to 2022.
"Landline telephony is declining because more and more people are also using their smartphones to call at home," says Marc Albers, CEO of Vodafone Germany, about the development. This is due to the fact that voice telephony is increasingly included in mobile tariffs without additional costs and mobile network signals are getting better and better with the advanced mobile network expansion. "And we are also calling more frequently via data services like WhatsApp and Co., because the landline internet is getting better and better," says Albers.
- Despite the decline, Verivox's survey reveals that landline phones remain vital for a significant portion of older consumers in Germany.
- Interested consumers can compare different telecommunications services, including landline and mobile plans, on Verivox's comparison portal.
- The survey conducted by Verivox revealed that approximately 30% of the 1,030 respondents no longer use a landline phone for any calls.
- In Heidelberg, like many other cities in Germany, consumers are increasingly using smartphones instead of landlines for phone calls and internet access.
- With the increasing popularity of mobile networks and data services, a smaller percentage of phone calls are now being made through traditional landlines in Germany, as indicated in the Federal Network Agency's survey.
