AT&T quits pay phones in 2008, blames cellphones

AT&T today revealed that it would leave the public pay phone business by the end of 2008, marking the near-end of the device in the US. The carrier points to the rapid growth of the cellphone in recent years as well as other "personal communication devices." There is no incentive to continue making and supporting fixed pay phones when that market is shrinking and likely to disappear altogether, according to the company. The provider poitns to a sheer drop in the past ten years which has seen the number of phones drop from 2.6 million as recently as 1998 to 1 million in 2007.

This drop primarily affects AT&T's core 13 service states, though nine other states have already dropped pay phones in 2006 through Bell South before it was acquired by AT&T. Only wholesale business will remain intact, the company says. Independents are expected to pick up the slack in areas which still need pay phones, though AT&T plans to help companies that depend on the phone booths to phase them out by the end of next year.

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Other story tags: AT&T