Montana, Prepare to Say Farewell to This Nostalgic Technology

I'm an "elder millennial." One of the most common ways that "elder millennials" are defined is by their relationship to communication technology, i.e. the internet and phones.

People born in the early 80s remember dial-up and a time before the internet. But the other thing that I think separates "elder millennials" from other millennials is growing up with a phone that had a chord, using an answering machine, and the number of years your house had a landline.

You Still See References to Landlines

I sort of chuckle now when I'm filling out any form that asks for a home phone number and a mobile phone number. I know that people still have landlines, and maybe you do, but I haven't had a landline since 2007.

Where you do see a lot of landlines is in local businesses. However, a new waiver proposed in California may mean we won't see landlines anymore.

Phone Providers and Landlines

CNN is reporting that the phone company AT&T has applied for a waiver that would mean it wouldn't have to service landlines in California. Part of the reason, CNN says, is that "more advanced technology doesn't work with landlines" so the phone service providers are angling to focus on just the newer technologies.

The CNN article states that "About 100 million landlines between business and residential are currently active in the US," meaning that it could take a long time before landlines are completely phased out.

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But will our culture make them obsolete first? How many times have you looked for a customer service number only to find that the company only accepts digital requests? How many times have you called for takeout but no one answered the phone?

The waiver hasn't been granted to AT&T yet, so landlines may still be used for a long time. Or maybe society will move on without them.