Some simple research has proved what many people have known for a long time — Australians are being ripped off by telcos when it comes to the cost of text messaging.
The standard flat rate for a text message at Telstra and Optus has remained unchanged at 25 cents, while at Vodafone, a text is 28 cents.
All carriers offer discount plans, generally for text messages to other people with the same carrier, eg the Telstra one-cent text to other Telstra users.
According to the article, the cost of texting on the GSM (2G) system is effectively free for the telecommunications companies, as they piggyback on the management channel used for the operation of the network. Costs on the 3G network are miniscule.
“The 25 cent cost of a text, for 160 bytes, means Optus and Telstra effectively charge $1560 per megabyte. If comparing with a $30 internet plan with a download limit of 10 gigabytes, the charge per megabyte is 0.3 cents, including free email.”
What a rort.
Even with discount plans there are strings attached and sorting through them is confusing.
I don’t send many text messages myself, and often use a free web-based service if I do, but the fact of the rort annoys me.
The Federal Government should step in and regulate if telcos can’t be trusted to give consumers a fair go.
However, the best Communications Minister Stephen Conroy could offer was: “It is important that consumers shop around for the best deal.”
Meanwhile, consumers who aren’t tech savvy are being ripped off every day.
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