I always new there was a reason I hated text messaging. As Wired's Gadget Lab blog points out, text messages cost your cell phone provider absolutely nothing. Zero, zip, nada. They're sent piggy-backed on network administrative traffic that would be sent regardless.
Cost to telco: $0.00. Cost to customers: $0.20. Number of text messages sent per year (worldwide): 2.5 trillion. We'll leave you to do the math.Is there anyone out there who doesn't hate their cell phone provider?
2 comments:
That makes me sad because I send a lot of texts... although we only pay $10 a month total for my entire family's unlimited texting, so it's not as bad as it could be (and definitely not $0.20 a text.
This is the reason why I believe that opening up spectrum to true competition will be great for consumers. Wireless spectrum allocation is the worst combination of bureaucratic inefficiency and monied special interests. I think tech nerds eventually might actually be able to sway public opinion on this one towards better policy from the FCC though. Conservatives and liberals alike should be all about government regulation that enforces free-market competition.
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