Hispanics’ Cellular Bills Are 10% Higher Than The National Average.

Scarborough Research released a study which found that Hispanics spend more on their monthly household cellular phone service than the national average. According to the study, the average monthly household cellular bill for Hispanics is $67, which is more than 10 percent higher than the national average of $60. Nationally, 64 percent of Hispanics live in a household with a cellular phone subscription. This is virtually equal to the national cell phone penetration rate of 66 percent.

Hispanics also report spending more on their monthly household long distance and local telephone service bills. The average household long distance bill for Hispanics is $33, versus $27 for all consumers. Hispanics average $36 per month for local service which is slightly higher than the national average of $34.

Nineteen percent of Hispanic consumers who said they or a member of their household subscribes to wireless service plan to switch carriers in the next year. They are 22 percent more likely than all wireless subscribers to do so.

“Hispanics are consuming products and services at a rate equal to, and, in certain instances, greater than the general population. These consumers, characterized as the ‘largest minority group’ in the 2000 Census, are in fact a consumer force to be reckoned with,” said Bob Cohen, Ph.D., President and CEO, Scarborough Research. “In the case of telecom, Hispanics tend to place great value on social and family ties, which makes being connected very important. This cultural nuance places Hispanics among the telecom industry’s best customers.”

Hispanics are 24 percent more likely than all consumers to have spent $150 or more on their monthly household cellular bill last month. They are 86 percent more likely than all consumers to spend $100 or more on their monthly long distance service and 41 percent more likely to spend $100 or more on their monthly local phone service.

The Scarborough study also found local market differences when it comes to household cell phone penetration among Hispanics. Miami and New York lead local Hispanic markets* in cell phone penetration. Seventy-four percent of Hispanics in Miami and 71 percent in New York said they or a member of their household subscribes to cellular service.

“The growth of the Hispanic marketplace in the U.S. is a national phenomenon, but marketing to these consumers requires a local focus,” said Dr. Cohen. “Cultural differences, shopping patterns and language preferences are important factors that distinguish Hispanic segments and these are driven at the local market level. Through better understanding Hispanics where they live, marketers can maximize their multicultural budget, make more informed media decisions, streamline the marketing process and expand their brand’s reach.”

Data in this report is from Scarborough USA+ 2003 Release 1. The 2003 data on switching carriers is from Release 1 and represents six months of measurements. The other 2003 data represents 12 months. DMA is a registered trademark of Nielsen Media Research. All other trade names are the property of their respective owners. Charts follow.

*Hispanic markets are defined as those DMAs which have 10 percent or more adults who define their ethnicity in the Scarborough study as “Spanish/Hispanic.”

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