Paper-based phone directories still going strong, whether you want them or not
Do people still use phone books anymore? When I need a phone number, I use this thing called the Internet and rarely rush to those massive yellow books holding up a shelf in my basement. Well, it turns out I'm in the minority. A recent usage study pointed out that Americans used the Yellow Pages almost 10 billion more times than online listings last year. That could be why these giant books continue to show up on my door.But it seems like I'm getting more directories than ever. And you probably are too. With two phone books published in the United States every year for every one American (yeah, that many!), it's apparent that phone directories are still making money in what is now a $17 billion-a-year industry.
The greener of us, of course, are complaining about all of that paper waste. Many states have tried to limit the number of books delivered to each of us and the idea of an opt-out process has been mentioned. So far, though, the legislation is not working. While some individual companies have decided to get rid of mountains of yellow pages, legislative attempts to limit directories have failed in a bunch of places including Hawaii, New York, and Washington.
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