Verizon and AT&T have jumped head-first into the shallow end of the social networking pool. The companies will charge consumers up to $35 per year to access unpopular social networking sites, a feature they’re respectively billing as “SocialLife” and “My Communities.” Not part of your social life or your community: Facebook.

Verizon will charge $17.88 per year for their service, a bargain compared to AT&T’s $35.88 fee.

Rob Hyatt, executive director of premium content for AT&T’s wireless division, said a service like “My Communities” would be helpful for novice users who are not as familiar navigating the mobile world as they are online. The new services also give much needed exposure to sites that might otherwise be overlooked, he added.

Translation: We’re going to overcharge ignorant people to access unpopular social networking services.

To us, it’s just another sad example of cellphone companies trying to beat cash out of consumers in exchange for half-baked features that kinda resembles what they want, but still manage to entirely miss the mark.

We’re not sure why anyone would pay to access services like AsiaAve, BlackPlanet and MiGente, Faithbase, or GLEE, when they could access more popular services through their web-enabled phones.

Be social and tell us what you think in the comments.

AT&T and Verizon Wireless Offer New Services for Friends [Bits]
(Photo: Getty)

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