With the advent of cellular and Internet-based phone service, and
traditional local and long distance service, it's never been
easier to reach out and touch someone.
The old telephone lines controlled by the former Baby Bells still
carry most of our calls, but cellular services have been gaining
ground at an astonishing pace. By the end of 2003, there were
nearly 159 million subscribers. A mere decade ago, the total
number of subscribers was 16 million. And cable companies are
chipping away further at local and long-distance companies as they
offer telephone service over the Internet.
What does this mean for the near future? First and foremost, the
entire Telecommunications Act of 1996 ・ a hugely important rewrite
of communications law that was supposed to create competition in
local phone service ・is in danger of becoming obsolete. Second,
the Federal Communications Commission will have to decide exactly
how to regulate phone service that's really computer data in
disguise. But the good news is that the consumer has more choices
as wireline, cellular and wireless companies compete with one
another. The bad news is, some of those services are actually
owned by the same company.
Local telephone service providers (by access lines)
The top local telephone service providers are ranked according to
the number of access lines each company controls. So long as
customers want to pick up their phones and hear a
good-old-fashioned dial tone, chances are they will use one of
these four carriers.
While competition in the local telephone industry has picked up in
recent years, most of the business is still dominated by the four
former Bell operating companies that are what's left of the old
AT&T telephone monopoly. The largest provider is Verizon
Communications Inc., with SBC Communications Inc. a very close
second.
|
Rank Company Lines* |
|
| 1. Verizon Communications
Inc. |
55.5 million |
| 2. SBC Communications Inc.
|
54.7 million |
| 3. BellSouth Corp. |
23.7 million |
| 4. Qwest Communications
International Inc. |
16.2 million |
Other
* Totals through year-end 2003. An access line connects a
telephone company's central office to a point usually on the
customer's premises.
Source: Securities and Exchange Commission filings. |
Long-distance phone service providers (by revenue)
Long distance companies are ranked by amount of money they take in
each year on toll calls. The former Baby Bells continue to chip
away at the traditional long-distance market. Many cell phone
plans now offer free long distance. The share of the three largest
providers is down to 62 percent, according to the most recent
revenue figures from the FCC. These numbers will most likely
continue to drop as more customers turn to cellular service and
the Internet to make the calls that have been considered "long
distance" up until now.
|
Rank Company |
Revenue* |
Market
Share |
| 1. AT&T Corp. |
$27,094
|
32% |
| 2. MCI Inc. |
$17,659
|
21% |
| 3. Sprint Corp. |
$7,077
|
9%
|
| Top 3 |
$51,829
|
62% |
Other
|
|
38% |
* Totals
through year-end 2002, in thousands.
Source: FCC Statistics of Communications Common Carriers
|
Wireless service providers
In 2003, wireless telephone service crossed a major milestone, as
the nationwide subscriber rate rose from 48 percent to 54 percent;
for the first time, more Americans are cellular subscribers洋ore
than 160 million in all. Customers are also talking on the cell
phones for more minutes per month than ever before. More
than 500 on average and sending an increasing number of text
messages through their cell phones.
As usage continues to skyrocket, however, the number of providers
remains relatively static. The top 10 service providers account
for 88.7 percent of all subscribers. The concentration will be
even greater as #2 provider Cingular finalizes its acquisition of
#3 AT&T Wireless, a merger that received final approval from the
FCC in late October.
|
Rank Carrier |
Subscribers* |
Market Share* |
1. Verizon Wireless Inc.
(Verizon Communications Inc.) |
37,522,000 |
23.3% |
|
2. Cingular Wireless LLC |
24,027,000 |
14.9% |
|
3. AT&T Wireless Services Inc. |
21,980,000 |
13.6% |
|
4. Sprint PCS (Sprint Corp.) |
15,900,000 |
9.9%
|
5. T-Mobile USA
(Deutsche Telekom AG) |
13,128,000 |
8.1% |
|
6. Nextel Communications, Inc. |
12,882,000 |
8.0% |
|
7. ALLTEL Corp. |
8,023,000 |
4.9% |
|
8. United States Cellular Corp. (Telephone and Data Systems
Inc.) |
4,409,000 |
2.7% |
|
9. Dobson Communications, Inc. |
1,552,000 |
1.0% |
|
10. Leap Wireless International Inc. |
1,473,000 |
0.9% |
|
Other |
|
12.7% |
|
Source: 2004 FCC Annual Report and Analysis of Competitive
Market Conditions With Respect to Commercial Mobile
Services. |
|
