Consumers Spending More on Cell Phones

As prices on the cheapest cell phones go down, the price customers are willing to pay for the highest-end phones has gone up. As a result, the average cost paid for mobile phones has gone up in the past year.

This bizarre phenomenon http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/11/20/cellphones-get-cheaper-so-people-pay-more/index.html?ex=1353301200&en=6b795caa49cbd754&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss target=_blank>was pointed out by the New York Times’ BITS blog on Tuesday, citing data from the NPD Group.

According to the NPD research, Americans spent $3.2 billion on mobile phones in the third quarter of this year, up from $2.2 billion in the same period in 2006. But, the total of 38 billion phones sold was up only four percent from the same period a year ago. This meant the average spent on phones in 2007 was $82.81, compared with $58.95 in 2006.