|
01/07/08
Europeans are
increasingly switching from fixed phone lines to mobile phones and
VoIP internet telephony, according to a European Union survey.
The poll,
carried out in November and December, found that 24% of European
households have given up fixed landlines for mobile phones, a 2%
increase, the report said.
The Czech
Republic, Finland and Lithuania had the lowest number of landlines
in use across the 27-nation bloc.
The survey,
which questioned 26,730 people across the 27-nation bloc, found that
22% are now using their personal computers for phone calls or video
chatting via programs such as Skype. That is a rise of 5% from the
last poll taken two years ago.
The survey
said the bloc's newer members, most of them in eastern Europe, were
leading the trend in a shift to online calling.
Baltic state
Lithuania posted the highest number of households using internet
phone services, with 61%, followed by Latvia, the Czech Republic and
Poland, where around half of households were using online calling
programs.
Almost 50% of
European households now have internet access and 36% have high-speed
broadband services, according to the survey.
Nick Gibson, editor
|
