Landline phone use among co-op members fell again last year, according to Touchstone Energy’s® 2012 National Survey on the Cooperative Difference. More than half of members ages 45 to 54 have smartphones. And even among those 65 and older, smartphone ownership more than doubled last year, to 15 percent.
Researchers asked about interest in co-op apps, focusing on eight interest areas that are available already at some co-ops. More than 80 percent said they’d be interested in an app that lets them report outages and receive updates on restoration efforts. Better than 70 percent expressed interest in getting updates on their home’s electric use, as well as local weather alerts.
Source: Electric Cooperative Today, Michael Kahn
