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Cell Phone Market Nears Saturation

Which means services for customers should get better

By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff

Posted May 30, 2008 8:46 AM CDT

(Newser) – The number of Americans signing up for cell phone service is slowing down after more than a decade of explosive growth, reports USA Today. Within a couple of years, experts say, just about everybody who wants a cell phone will have one, meaning good news for consumers as companies focus on luring each other's customers away instead of signing up new ones.

"The vision of every adult in America having a cell phone is a great aspiration until you get there," an industry analyst said. "Then it raises the obvious question: Now what?" Telecom giants such as Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon are hoping that the rise of wireless data will offset slowing growth in the increasingly saturated market.

The vision of every adult in America having a cellphone is a great aspiration until you get there, a telecoms busines expert said. Then it raises the obvious question: Now what?
"The vision of every adult in America having a cellphone is a great aspiration until you get there," a telecoms busines expert said. "Then it raises the obvious question: Now what?"   (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The number of cellphone users has been growing rapidly for over 10 years but the market is now getting close to the point where everybody who wants a cellphone has one.
The number of cellphone users has been growing rapidly for over 10 years but the market is now getting close to the point where everybody who wants a cellphone has one.   ((c) alt1040)
Motorola cell phones are displayed in a New York store in this March 26, 2008, file photo. The number of cellphone subscribers in the US jumped 33.8 million to 255.4 million between 1995 and 2007.
Motorola cell phones are displayed in a New York store in this March 26, 2008, file photo. The number of cellphone subscribers in the US jumped 33.8 million to 255.4 million between 1995 and 2007.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
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