Tim
Placed inside all of AT&T customers’ monthly wireless bills is something called an Administrative Fee. It’s a pretty vague name considering what AT&T says that fee is associated with. According to AT&T when asked, “This is a standard administrative fee across the wireless industry, which helps cover costs we incur for items like cell site maintenance and interconnection between carriers.”
Now that you know what it is, it’s time to share the news.
Apparently, the cost AT&T incurs for cell site maintenance and interconnection between carriers is hefty, because that same Administrative Fee is seeing a massive increase of $0.76/month to $1.99/month. Not including prepaid lines, when added up and multiplied by 12 months, that’s roughly an extra $800 million AT&T is bringing in from its monthly customers.
Analysts believe that this move is not related to the company’s wireless business at all, but instead, centers solely around its recent purchase of Time Warner for around $108 billion. With the deal closed, AT&T has brought on an estimated $60 billion of net debt.
In other words, it’s a major US carrier acting exactly like a US carrier would, which is not really caring about its customers or their wallets.
Collapse Show Comments32 Comments