Phoning a Friend? Think WhatsApp, Zoom, or Teams Instead!
Decreasing Landline and Mobile Calls
Sound the alarm, landline and mobile calls are going out of style! According to the Federal Network Agency in Bonn's latest report, only a mere 11% of all conversations in the past year happened through a good old-fashioned landline. That's right, app-based communication has taken over! Even the volume of chats via mobile networks saw a 4% dip.
In Germany, the landline conversation minutes have plummeted to a daunting 57 billion, down 11% from the previous year. Mobile calls didn't fare much better, with a total of 148 billion minutes of conversations, a 4% decrease. This steep drop in landline calls has been consistent, with a whopping 20% decline in 2023 alone. The agency attributes this change to the rising popularity of number-independent interpersonal telecommunications services, especially messenger and video conferencing services.
These apps, including WhatsApp, Zoom, and Teams, have seen a 21.6 billion minute increase in calls, from 175.1 billion minutes in 2023 to a staggering 196.7 billion minutes in 2024. The number of instant messages sent through these services also skyrocketed, from 891.4 billion to a mind-boggling 901.9 billion.
But it's not just the number of chats that's increasing. Data usage is also climbing for both landline and mobile. Landline data usage saw a 35 gigabyte per connection and month increase, averaging at a hefty 322 gigabytes. Mobile data usage inched up slightly from 7.2 to 7.4 gigabytes per month and SIM profile. A whopping 88% of this data traffic was handled via LTE, 10% via 5G, and the remaining 2% via the GSM network.
The telecommunications industry saw a whopping 14.9 billion euros invested in it last year, mainly due to the expansion of fiber optic and mobile infrastructure. This marks a 13% increase compared to the previous year.
Avoid costly transition contracts and be patient while waiting for fiber optics!
- Sources: ntv.de, [jwu/AFP]
- Insights: The shift towards app-based communication seems to be a global trend, not just restricted to Germany. With the increasing use of messaging and video conferencing services, it's clear that traditional landline and mobile calls are becoming relics of the past. The growth in data usage and the expansion of fiber optic and mobile infrastructure show a commitment to supporting these popular, data-intensive communication methods. 1, 2, 3, 4
In the wake of this shift towards app-based communication, it's imperative for communities to revise their policy and consider vocational training programs focused on technology, to equip its citizens for this increasingly digital world. The growth in data usage and the expansion of fiber optic and mobile infrastructure suggest a future dominated by technology-driven communication methods, making it crucial for individuals to be proficient in these areas.
