Accumulating phones: Aid and adaptation in phone access for the urban poor

Abstract

This study draws on participant observation and interviews with low-income adults in Chicago to show how the poor stay connected to phone service and mobile Internet through the possession of multiple phones, including those subsidized by government aid. The “accumulation” of phones by individuals is widely observed, though underexplored in scholarship. Popular media coverage in the US frames the possession of multiple phones by people in poverty as criminal or excessive. In contrast, this study identifies three functions for phone accumulation as a strategy for maintaining phone access: to back up other phones, to build up capacities across phones, and to share phones with others in need. Each function responds to struggles unique for the urban poor as mobile technology advances and public phone access declines. Extra phones insure against regular disconnections due to loss and theft of devices and limits on subsidized service. Active service on one device combines with Internet functionality on another to approximate a single, high-end device and service plan. Subsidized phones help overcome the hesitation that poor people feel in lending out their devices to others in need. Accumulation thus contributes to the goal of securing reliable phone access for low-income Americans. There are limits to accumulation as a strategy for maintaining access, which result from the prevalence of inferior hardware, limited service plans, and lack of trust among strangers. Telecommunications policies should adapt to the needs of low-income phone users with accumulation in mind. The article concludes with recommendations for adapting policy to the needs of low-income phone users.