(Kevin Loh) Opening your monthly mobile phone bill to find it significantly more expensive than it’s suppose to be can be infuriating. Finding out that it’s more expensive because you were charged for products you never requested is even worse. But wireless cramming is a practice that more and more consumers – and wireless providers (huh?) – are finding themselves victims of. A new report [PDF], and subsequent hearing, on the subject by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on Wednesday revealed that the practice of placing charges for third-party goods and services – think Hollywood gossip or daily horoscope texts – on consumers’ phone bills is growing more prevalent by wireless carriers, despite their so-called self-regulation practices. “I don’t think the telephone companies were happy or content that the crammers were defrauding their customers,” Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal said, “but they almost certainly welcomed the revenue.” And that revenue translated into billions of dollars for wireless providers and the third-party companies who produced the products. Still, those working in the wireless industry contend that carriers are doing their best to stop the hurtful practice. Michael Altschul, an official with wireless trade group Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association, said during the hearing that wireless carriers agreed that “placing an unauthorized, misleading or deceptive third-party charge on a consumer’s wireless bill is wrong and simply not acceptable.” But don’t go blaming the carriers for all that cramming, because they, too, are apparently victims.
Wireless Carriers Are Victims Of Phone Cramming Too, They Just Make Billions Of Dollars Instead Of Losing It
Ashlee Kieler, The Consumerist
Thu, 07/31/2014 - 8:24am
Topics: kevin loh opening pdf commerce science transportation hollywood connecticut senator richard blumenthal michael altschul cellular telecommunications industry association carriers it s u.s november psms federal trade commission ftc senate committee i altschul in at&t sprint verizon t-mobile sms victims phone cramming billions of dollars consumers billing third-party practices self-regulation practice policies report companies action bills direct consumer charges monthly charge don monitoring scammers finding revealed agreed services placing unauthorized told included deceptive vendors premium major hearing growing charged rates retain products providers content expensive requested week stopped charging officials continued revenue stop allegedly
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