Hands-Free Law Helps Boost Sales of Bluetooth Headset Devices

Published on: 23rd July 2008

California cell phone users have learned that driving and dialing is a thing of the past. Sales of Bluetooth headset devices surged in the months prior to the new law going on the books, according to market research company, The NPD Group's store level data.

While California's law only went into effect on July 1, hands-free Bluetooth manufacturers have been reaping California gold since March, when sales of the devices skyrocketed in San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles, and San Diego. They were the top four markets, based on units per store, among the major metro areas in the U.S.

San Francisco, for example, sold almost two times the national average in March, almost three times the national average in April, and more than four times the national average in May. May sales were also impressive in Sacramento, Los Angeles, and San Diego, all areas which sold almost four times the national average of Bluetooth headsets. May sales in cities such as St. Louis, Phoenix, and Atlanta, which do not have hands-free laws, were well below the national average.

"Legislation has given a helping hand to hands-free technologies," said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis for NPD. "As Bluetooth approaches ubiquity in U.S. handsets, headset makers are taking advantage of new consumer demand with designs that are smaller, sleeker, and reduce noise better."

 

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