Sunday June 26, 2005
Why I love America
- Posted by Rob (#1) on June 26, 2005 11:07 CEST
I text a lot of UK numbers and I'm very disappointed by the costs involved.
Three years ago, I could send SMS messages to any mobile in the world for $0.05 (less than 3p) with the Cingular pre-paid card I used in California. According to their web site, that price is still accurate.
Well, forget about that in Europe. Last week, I got a T-Mobile pre-paid card in the UK. Within the UK, texts cost me 10p to UK numbers (or as cheap as 5p with a bundle) and 20p to foreign numbers. My Dutch subscription plan (KPN Hi) allows me to send SMS messages for only €0.07 (over 4p) to Dutch numbers but it's still €0.29 (nearly 20p) to foreign numbers.
It's understandable that texting UK numbers with a UK plan, even pre-paid, is twice to four times as cheap as doing so with a calling plan in Holland. But it's really frustrating to know that it would be seven times cheaper with a pre-paid card in the US, indeed cutting even local UK prices in half.
The telecommunication market in Europe is such a rip-off. Why can't life be affordable for the middle class, like it is in the United States?
- PermaLink: Why I love America
- Tags: California, Cingular, pre-paid, SMS, UK, T-Mobile, KPN
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