Mobile phones are used for a variety of purposes, such as keeping in touch with family members, for conducting business, and in order to have access to a telephone in the event of an emergency. Some people carry more than one mobile phone for different purposes, such as for business and personal use. Multiple SIM cards may be used to take advantage of the benefits of different calling plans. For example, a particular plan might provide for cheaper local calls, long-distance calls, international calls, or roaming.
The mobile phone has been used in a variety of diverse contexts in society. For example:
A study by Motorola found that one in ten mobile phone subscribers have a second phone that is often kept secret from other family members. These phones may be used to engage in such activities as extramarital affairs or clandestine business dealings.
Some organizations assist victims of domestic violence by providing mobile phones for use in emergencies. These are often refurbished phones.
The advent of widespread text-messaging has resulted in the cell phone novel, the first literary genre to emerge from the cellular age, via text messaging to a website that collects the novels as a whole.[25]
Mobile telephony also facilitates activism and public journalism being explored by Reuters and Yahoo![26] and small independent news companies such as Jasmine News in Sri Lanka.