NEWSRELEASE
For Release: March 11, 2004
Contact: John McDowell (202) 205-6941
john.mcdowell@sba.gov
SBA Number: 04-08 ADVO
Small Business
Use Of Telecommunications Services
Detailed In New Report
WASHINGTON, D.C. Sound small business telecommunications policy grounded in solid research is now possible because of survey results released today by the Office of Advocacy. The report details small business telecommunications use and spending and offers a wide range of data previously unavailable to policy makers.
"Intense legislative and regulatory debates surround telecommunications policy," said Thomas M. Sullivan, Chief Counsel for Advocacy. "On issues like competition and broadband service the discussion has focused on individual consumers. But small businesses are major consumers of telecommunications services, too. This report will help policy makers understand how their decisions will affect innovative and job-generating small businesses."
The new and much needed data in A Survey of Small Businesses Telecommunications Use and Spending, written by TeleNomic Research and funded by the Office of Advocacy, shows that small business spends on average $543 per month on telecommunications services. It also clearly shows that differences in size and industry drive telecommunications spending.
The report finds that the smallest of businesses pay the most per employee for local and long distance phone service. Firms with zero to four employees face a monthly cost per employee of $82.81, while small firms with 10 to 499 employees face a monthly per employee cost of $20.99.
Also among the reports findings, 73 percent of small businesses use Internet access services. Of these, 38 percent use dial-up, 26 percent use cable modems, 21 percent use DSL, four percent use satellites, four percent use T-1 lines, and three percent use wireless broadband.
The Office of Advocacy, the "small business watchdog" of the government, examines the role and status of small business in the economy and independently represents the views of small business to federal agencies, Congress, and the President. It is the source for small business statistics presented in user-friendly formats and it funds research into small business issues.
For a complete copy of the report, visit the Office of Advocacy website at www.sba.gov/advo.
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Created by Congress in 1976, the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent voice for small business within the federal government. Appointed by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, the Chief Counsel for Advocacy directs the office. The Chief Counsel advances the views, concerns, and interests of small business before Congress, the White House, federal agencies, federal courts, and state policy makers. Economic research, policy analyses, and small business outreach help identify issues of concern. Regional Advocates and an office in Washington, DC, support the Chief Counsels efforts. For more information on the Office of Advocacy, visit www.sba.gov/advo, or call (202) 205-6533.