SMS wrote:
> Richard B. Gilbert wrote:
>
>> 35 cents a minute? Gawd! If my mother or my stepmother had lived to
>> see cell phones, they would have talked sixteen hours per day and the
>> family would have been bankrupt!
>
> 35¢ a minute is actually pretty low for overage charges.
>
> That's actually one of the big advantages of prepaid, you don't pay
> outrageous overages, you just pay the normal per minute rate. Prepaid is
> available on Verizon's network for as little as 5.3¢ per minute.
>
> Sprint had a deal for a while that got rid of the huge overage charges,
> called "Fair and Flexible."
>
> It's a double-edged sword for the carriers. If they made the overages
> reasonable then subscribers would be less careful about going over, and
> use more than their plan minutes without much concern. However that
> would cause some subscribers to move to lower tiers, which would cost
> the carrier money.

But frankly I find the business model of raping customers when they go
over just plain wrong. Just imagine if other services operated in a
similar fashion. Say you needed to cross a bridge every day and you
could buy a monthly pass that cost say $50 that entitled to cross once
each day. You are a loyal customer and have been using the bridge for
years. Some event happens where you need to cross more often and they
charge you $7 for each additional crossing. I doubt anyone would put up
with it.

Cell phones are no longer something magical. The days of having to
accept whatever is offered are winding down..