Cingular has a lot of balls increasing it’s text prices by 50%

Link: GigaOM » Cingular To Boost Text Rate?

There’s word out that Cingular is changing its per text-message fee from 10 cents to 15 cents starting late January.

Katie over at GigaOm is not, to say the least, very impressed at this news. Particularly given the ‘yes, prices are going up’ and ‘er, no, no such thing is happening’ mixed messages she’s been getting from them.

Frankly I’m not surprised.

These old wireline wireless companies need to get as much cash as possible before they get nailed to the wall. We should, I suppose, be feeling sorry for them.

My rather direct view is that it’s absolutely outrageous to increase text messaging fees.

It’s past outrageous.

What could you POSSIBLY say to justify it?

“Well, you know, managing billions of 160 character messages is a bit of an arse you know, it’s quite costly.”

Nope. That doesn’t work. Absolute tosh.

But it shouldn’t come as a surprise.

If the Cingular announcement turns out to be valid, it won’t change anything — particularly if Orange’s behaviour here in the UK recently is anything to go by. My friends are scandalised when I explain that Orange brazenly told the marketplace that it had to decided to increase the costs of text messaging from 10p to 12p. Scandalised, but they do sweet FA about it.

Ultimately — and this is the biggie — no one cares.

Everyone cares just a little. No one — but me, Katie and a few other folk actually mind. I know. I started that make-texting-cheaper campaign a while ago. Got a bit of traction. Ultimately though, most people responded with, ‘well, I actually get 500 texts free every month you know,’. That sort of viewpoint.

Of course, these are the same people that wonder why their £35 a month price plan actually comes to £78 every month. It’s all those extra 12ps and those 35p a minute cross-network calls after you’ve used up your bundles.

What do folk do about it? Pay the bill and carry on as normal.

So. Outrageous behaviour. Ridiculous. But justified.

Justified because no one cares. No one actually changes operators. Brave the bit of scandal, Mr Cingular, ride through it and you’ll be making pots of cash next quarter — which you desperately need.