Apple Attacking Overpriced Carrier Text Messaging Plans

Apple announced some new features today during its Worldwide Developers Conference that will affect wireless carrier revenues in the future.  AT&T and Verizon each make about $10 Billion dollars per year on text messaging revenue plans per year from their 30 million customers.  Apple's new, free iMessage service should be a heard as a "shot across the bow" to the wireless carriers who overcharge for text messaging services which should be free.  Apple's new iMessaging service will go over the data network, and won't count towards your 500 or 1000 text messaging monthly plans.  If you are only messaging your friends with iPhone's or Apple devices you are in luck and may never have to pay for an SMS data package again.

Paying $10 for text messaging does not make any sense and should be free. The average AT&T iPhone users sends 621 text messages per month on AT&T.  This costs the average iPhone subscriber .33 cents per day or $10 per month to send something that costs a fraction of penny to perform.  The gross margins on text messaging for carriers are astronomical and the service should be free.  Similar services like Skype, Google Voice, Twitter and Facebook provide free service for consumers and are actually better services.  These services are all free for PC or Mac users who access the internet through WiFi and $25 a month through an existing data plan.

One concern about eliminating the data plan is that the carriers will undoubtedly try and start gouging consumers even more on data plans.  So we recommend to all consumer get used to finding, using and putting up free WiFi whenever possible.  Free data is the only way of the future.

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