A regular electronic device such as a Mobile Phone has now become the symbol of rampant consumerism in society. The group that is smitten by this device is the next generation of this society but they are now the appeased group as well, as more and more parents are spending money for buying their kids a mobile phone and are also taking care of their phone bills.
Reports published by the Reuters news service quotes the Halifax' pocket money survey stating that mobile phone ownership amongst the primary school children is growing and almost 57% of 7-11 year olds have . While for those in age group of 12-16 the number is 94%!
One of the few reasons for this phenomenon is the safety aspect as parents feel assured if their child is carrying a mobile phone. Earlier it used to cost them a bomb to equip their kid with a mobile but now it just adds up in the miscellaneous expenses!! The basic reason for this is the free handsets that are available nowadays with cheap . These contract mobile phones are very cheap as more often than not the handsets are offered free of cost and even the line rental is subsidised that makes the deals more lucrative.
Now due to cut throat competition in this segment of industry all the retailers are trying to capture the market that is almost saturated. For this they are getting more and more liberal in their offerings leaving the consumer in a quandary to decide as to which is the best mobile phone contract deal for him!
They offer free mobile phones, offer free line rental plans (sometimes for upto 12 months) and then offer free gifts as well like a gaming console, a flatscreen TV, an iPod it can be just anything. To top it all now everyone seems to be offering cashbacks on mobile phone deals! Whatever maybe the deal but the only benefactor is the consumer who is just getting more and more pampered; they just love it and the retailers?? You will find them on their way to the bank!!!
