by Andrew Redfern @ 22nd May 2008 9:29 am

Nearly three out of four consumers agree that mobile phone usage on airplanes should be restricted to silent features only according to a new survey commissioned by Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) and conducted by Harris Interactive(R).

The survey demonstrates that U.S. consumers today view their mobile phone as more than just a phone, it’s a computer in their pocket with a wide variety of features. Consumers surveyed support the ability to access mobile phone features like e-mail, text and IM while in-flight, but made clear their preference for no talking.

“There is an increasing debate about the use of mobile phones on airplanes,” said Bruce Stewart, vice president and general manager, Connected Life Americas, Yahoo!. “This new survey overwhelmingly proves the desire of consumers to stay connected to the people, information, interests and passions that are important to them while in-flight, but they don’t want to be forced to listen to the conversation of the passenger sitting next to them.”

Across the U.S.A., but especially in the West, most consumers agree that mobile phone usage on planes should be restricted to non-talking features only:

* West: 83 percent
* Northeast: 72 percent
* Midwest: 73 percent
* South: 69 percent

More than half of consumers (60 percent) would want to use silent features while flying on an airplane such as:

* Text message: 38 percent
* Access e-mail: 28 percent
* Play games: 29 percent

Age impacts consumers’ mobile phone service preferences while in flight:

* 35-44 year olds: 43 percent, more so than any other age group, would want to check e-mail on their mobile
* 18-34 year olds: 62 percent would want to text and 29 percent would want to instant message (IM)

The Talking Zone

If usage of mobile phones was allowed while in-flight, more than two out of three (69 percent) consumers agreed that there should be a designated area of an airplane for passengers who want to talk on their mobile phones. In fact, older consumers (76 percent) and women (73 percent) are more likely to agree than their younger (64 percent) and male (64 percent) counterparts.

As the number one mobile web destination in the U.S. (M:Metrics, March 2008), Yahoo! offers a variety of award-winning mobile services that connect consumers to the people, information and passions that matter to them no matter where they are. The new Yahoo! Mobile Homepage is a highly-personalized starting point for consumers on the mobile Internet.

Yahoo! oneSearch is a search experience designed specifically for mobile that gives consumers access to instant answers and relevant results. Yahoo! Go 3.0 is Yahoo!’s flagship mobile Internet experience that integrates key Yahoo! services such as mail, news and finance as well as an ever-growing selection of third party widgets that unlock the true power of the mobile Internet.

Methodology for Survey

This Mobile Phone Usage survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Yahoo! Mobile between April 29 and May 1, 2008 among 2,030 adults ages 18+, of whom, 1,778 are mobile phone owners who have ever flown in an airplane.

Results were weighted as needed on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, and race/ethnicity. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments.

Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words “margin of error” as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100 percent response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys.

The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the U.S. adult population.

Because the sample is based on those who agreed to be invited to participate in the Harris Interactive online research panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

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