Use and abuse of cellular phones

The use of cellular phones proves the ideas of Hayek. At first, getting a cellular telephone line and the phone itself was a privilege of those who could pay it at once. With time the supply grew and the prices dropped, and should drop more if competition is opened. In the international market, cellular phones have become part of special offers, and the user can get one by subscribing to telecommunications services, credit cards and other offers.

Cellular phones satisfy communication needs that traditional services don't serve. They are flooding the market and turning into indispensable articles to keep up with an increasingly active life. But that has left little time to think about the use and abuse of such a popular item.

Not knowing where the owner of the phone may be is one of the main reasons a useful tool can turn into such inopportune invention. The media have reported more than one unfortunate accident caused by drivers using their phones on the road, adolescents and adults who forget they are driving. The ring is able to distract anyone, at school, in the middle of a theater presentation, a movie or a business meeting. Even in church, the ring breaks the silence of prayer, and worse if the owner answers the call.

When buying a cellular phone :

• Use it for the most important calls only
  
• Don't make personal calls in the middle of a meeting, when people are having a conversation, or at mealtimes in restaurants, in order not to disturb your companions.
  
• If you must answer a call, look for a place where nobody will hear your conversation.
  
• When receiving a call, ask where you can call the person back later.

In Guatemala, more than 22 thousand cellular lines and phones have been sold in the last five years (10% of the total telephone lines installed by Guatel, the national telephone company, in the whole country). It is expected that use will grow considrably, when new frequencies are awarded and technological advances are made.