Reuters On Telephone Cultures

mamladm writes "Reuters has an interesting article about the Differences in Telephone Cultures between the US and Europe. It describes how the different regulatory frameworks have created distinct cultures on how telephones are being used in the US versus Europe. The article mainly discusses mobile phone usage, though."

Useless Features

[ari_j]

I know this much - I once saw a cell phone ad where the guys are at a restaurant and the one uses the pepper grinder built into his phone. Then the ad cuts in, with the narrator asking, "Want a phone with the features you need?" before breaking into a list of just utterly useless garbage. Games, ringtones, a shitty camera, etc. My only thought was that the pepper mill would have been far more useful.

Differences in phone culture

[Underholdning]

Here's a list of the biggest differences (I've learnt how Americans use the phone by watching hollywood movies):

• Never say goodbye. Just hang up - the person at the other end obviously knows the conversation is over.
• Always repeat what the other person is saying out loud.
• Repeatedly taps the hook if the phone dies. "Hello!?" *tap* *tap* *tap* as if that will magically restore the line.

Re:Useless Features

[The Angry Mick]

Heh heh.

I'm still waiting to see the Swiss Army Phone: complete with dual blades, toothpicks, corkscrew, drill, nail file, USB key, etc. You know, all the stuff that'll keep the f*cking thing from getting on a plane.

Re:Revenue

[millahtime]

Why walk next store or down to the pub to try to find them, when you could just ring them and be certain they're there?

Guess I just know my friends are always at home or the pub. Sometimes I forget not everyone has lazy drunk friends like I do.

Bah...

[Gruneun]

Perhaps, you should picture the person on the landline sitting on a plastic chair, in an air-conditioned house, with the lights on. I, on the other hand, prefer to use my mobile phone only while sitting in a bird-sanctuary, on a weathered rock, warmed by the sun's rays.

Besides, energy consumption shouldn't be nearly as great a concern as the process by which that energy has been generated.

Re:Aha

[Anonymous Coward]

I find it funny that on the American versions of the "Jamster" (Jamba in Germany) adverts they have to have a short blurb explaining what an SMS is.

Hopefully when Dubya sees that FUCKING FROG, he'll declare Jamster to be part of the axis of evil and nuke it.

Re:Enough Cell Phones!!!!

[drooling-dog]

That's why I try not to use my cellphone while I'm drivin' my Hummer...

Re:Aha

[mo^]

That explains then why i can opnly get 512k broadband at an extortionate cost in Uk whilst my american chums are mostly on 2.5mb and above

(goddamn, did i just defend america... i must be sick...)

Re:Differences in phone culture

[The Angry Mick]

You forgot:

Dude!!! Guess where I'm callin' you from!!!

True, but...

[sczimme]

I, on the other hand, prefer to use my mobile phone only while sitting in a bird-sanctuary, on a weathered rock, warmed by the sun's rays.

True, but if you are one of those gits who needs to SHOUT into the mobile you will have very few friends in the bird sanctuary.

:-)

Re:Enough Cell Phones!!!!

[Anonymous Coward]

You can't be a good knee-jerk environmentalist if you are going to look at the big picture!

Next time, you'll probably start complaining about recycling in the US by discussing things like the additional fuel usage of a separate truck fleet and the chemicals used in cleaning and processing glass and glossy paper.

If you want to make headlines, you need to keep the numbers to a minimum. Select a single statistic and base all policy decisions off that.