The office landline – vital piece of kit, right? Well apparently not, according to some new research, which suggests the desk phone will be defunct within five years.
A study of 500 chief information officers by Virgin Media Business found 65 per cent think the desk telephone is likely to become redundant as the dominance of smartphones grows.
The next piece of office technology that is most likely to disappear is the PC, according to 62 per cent of those interviewed.
Tony Grace, chief operating officer of Virgin Media Business, said: “The pace of change with technology is having a transformative effect on the way we work.
“A decade ago it would have been unthinkable to suggest an office without telephones. Now it’s hard to imagine being separated from our smartphones.”
So will we really see the landline obsolete by 2017? For me, a desk phone was vital to setting up my business and growing it.
I used my landline – I’ve still got it – to conduct the majority of my client and supplier calls as I was setting out. Not only that, but a formal landline number also helped to give my company some professional credence. It looked better on my business card than a mobile number.
Certainly from my business travels I’ve seen how the smartphone is becoming more and more popular. It makes sense when moving around, jumping on a train and passing from office to office, to liaise via a mobile.
But I’m a little dubious about the idea the landline will completely disappear from business use. What do you think?