During her two years living in Penn college houses, College sophomore Jessica Renny has never used a landline phone.
"I've never plugged it in, and I don't even know the number," she said.
Although every room in college houses and University-owned Greek houses is supposed to come with a landline phone and jack, it appears that fewer students are making use of the provided service - and the shift away from landlines is taking place across the country, too.
According to a 2008 report by the National Center for Health Statistics, one in six households did not have a traditional landline - a significant increase from 2004, when only about one in 17 did not have one.
The replacement has largely been the cell phone, whose use has skyrocketed in the past several years thanks to cheap phones and wireless plans.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that in 2007, 54.8 percent of consumer spending went to mobile phone services versus 43.4 percent to residential landlines. In 2001, those numbers were 23 percent and 75 percent, respectively.
With the advent of text messaging and the many features of popular smart phones like the BlackBerry and iPhone, people have largely switched preferences, as they have become dependent on their cell phones.
"I'm out of my room most of the day, so I would be impossible to reach without my cell phone," said College freshman Nitya Kanuri. "Plus, texting is way handier for all the little things."
Regardless of whether or not students use provided landline phones, the school charges a fee per semester for the telephone service, according to the Student Telephone Services Web site.
Many students have found the fee unnecessary.
"It should be optional," said Engineering and College senior Thalia Shamash. "I don't use the phone, my roommates don't use it and I don't know anyone at school who has ever used it."
Associate Vice President of Networking and Telecommunications Michael Palladino said in an e-mail that the school cannot capture any data on inbound calling or on-campus calling with the landline phones.
About 1,000 calls are made a year to public safety from the residential phones.
"A number of students and/or their families use the phones in this capacity to save on cell minutes or because they find connectivity provided by landlines more convenient," he wrote.
While Penn's residential landline policy may not match its students' changing habits, Wharton and College sophomore Sejal Shah said, she thinks the policy is likely to change sooner than later.
"For our generation, landline phones have gone out of use, and I don't believe anybody in college can see themselves using a landline phone," she said. After thinking about it for a little while, she added, "At least, until they are settled down."
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