The next time you’re on a Delta Air Lines flight and want to tell the pal picking you up at the airport that your flight is delayed (or ask your mom to please make sure there are cheese curds in the refrigerator upon your arrival), you’ll be able to send a text message from the air — for free. [More]
text messaging
Uber Settles Charges Of Sending Unwanted Texts With No Opt-Out
By 5.5.17 — Updated: 5.9.17
If you’re interested in signing up as an Uber driver, a friend or driver can have the site text you a mutually beneficial referral code. Some consumers in Washington state reported receiving referral text messages from the ride-hailing app that they didn’t ask for, though, with no way to opt out, and now the company and the state have settled those charges. [More]
Yahoo’s New Text Bot Will Annoy Your Family For You
By 3.6.17 — Updated: 3.7.17
Need to remind your husband that you have wine night with the girls tonight, but don’t have time to text him? Yahoo’s new text message bot does. [More]
T-Mobile Launches Advanced Messaging: Texts With iMessage Features
By 7.22.15
Over the years, the creation of messaging apps and their plentiful features – read receipts, quick responses, the ability to send large photo and video files – have cut into the territory once occupied by traditional SMS texting. While standard texting isn’t exactly dead, its prospects aren’t looking super sunny as T-Mobile announced it would be revamping its messaging to offer more features. [More]
Seattle-Area Theater Will Encourage Texting During Performances
By 11.29.11
If you’re the type of audience member who feels the need to make the performance a sideshow to your nonstop texting and social network updating, you might want to make plans to move to the Seattle area by 2014. A theater there that’s slated to open that year will embrace technological obsession rather than discourage it, encouraging customers to text during shows. [More]
Growth Of Texting Craze Starts To Slow
By 9.21.11
Likely thanks to the proliferation of smartphones and the way they facilitate on-the-fly email and instant messaging — as well as widespread social network use — text messaging is no longer the growth cottage industry it once was. According to researchers, adults sent and received a median average of 10 texts per day this spring, the same figure as last spring. The previous fall, the median average was five per day. [More]
AT&T Retires $10 Messaging Plan For New Customers
By 8.18.11
AT&T is retiring its Messaging 1000 plan on Aug. 21, leaving new customers with just two messaging options: an unlimited plan or a pay-per-message basis. [More]
Sprint Customers Have Trouble Receiving Texts From Outside Network
By 7.8.11
Sprint customers are lucky dogs indeed. Because the company confirmed that there’s a problem with Sprint customers receiving text messages from out-of-network phones, customers now have an alibi to ignore unwanted messages without seeming like jerks. [More]
Save Money By Emailing Phones Rather Than Texting
By 8.18.10
If you’ve got a smart phone it doesn’t make much sense to pay $5, $10 or more a month for text messaging plans once you realize you can send free messages to friends’ phones via email. All you need to pull off the trick is your text-ees’ phone numbers and service providers. [More]
Verizon Took Away My Wife's Texting Plan, Won't Give It Back
By 8.9.10
Josh and his wife thought they’d save some money by combining their contracts into a family plan, but were surprised by their next bill, which itemized Josh’s texts and put his wife on a more expensive plan that allowed her fewer messages. Josh says he argued with Verizon reps but can’t get them to reinstate his wife’s old text messaging plan and let him join in. [More]
Verizon's Robots Won't Stop Trying To Get Me To Pay For Bulk Text Messaging
By 4.8.10
Matt isn’t big on text messaging, which is why he says Verizon has assaulted him with robocalls to get him to get in on the labor-intensive, thumb-cramping, erratic driver-inspiring phenomenon. [More]
Update: All Four Major Carriers Now Waiving Fees For Haiti SMS Donations
By 1.14.10
Update 2: Sprint has also announced that it is waiving fees, retroactive to Wednesday. (Thanks to changebumpin!)
Update: MSNBC has updated their article, and they say that AT&T has announced it will waive fees for donations, and apply the exemption retroactively to those who have already donated. (Thanks to Mathew for the heads up.) [More]
Trucker Fired By Text Message
By 12.30.09
Randy was a trucker until he got a couple texts notifying him otherwise, South Carolina’s WTLX reports. [More]
Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Payless Shoesource For Text Message Spamming
By 11.4.09
Peter, who wrote in last month to complain about being text-spammed by Payless Shoesource on his phone, wasn’t the only customer they annoyed. A man in California has filed a class action lawsuit against the shoe company and Voice & Mobile Broadcast Corporation, which is the marketing company it hired to run the campaign.
Customer Gets Payless To Compensate Him For Text Message Spam
By 10.23.09
Peter was pretty frustrated when Payless Shoesource ignored his two opt-out texts and continued to pester him with SMS spam. His complained via email and got taken off their list, but then he decided to see if he could get back the money those texts cost him.
Class Action Suit Against Apple And AT&T For Lack Of MMS On iPhones
By 8.21.09
No matter how awesome the iPhone is at multimedia, gaming, or taking money out of your wallet and mailing it to AT&T and Apple, it still doesn’t let you use multimedia messaging service (MMS)—you know, that thing where you send a photo to a friend over text message. Earlier this year AT&T finally said it would happen by the end of summer, but now a group of customers in Louisiana are tired of waiting.
Man Runs Up $26,000 T-Mobile Bill Pursuing Text Message Record; Thumbs in Stable Condition
By 4.23.09
A pair of friends in Pennsylvania decided to pursue the world record for text messaging. After they reached 217,000 texts, they learned that one of their providers, T-Mobile, really had an upper limit to “unlimited” texting, and sending 217,000 texts led to a $26,000 phone bill that cost $27 just to mail.
AT&T's 'American Idol' Text Message Stunt Backfires
By 1.15.09
AT&T spammed a “‘significant number’ of its 75 million customers” yesterday with text messages advertising the premiere of American Idol. AT&T also pissed off a significant number of its 75 million customers in the process, and the company’s justification for the blitz isn’t exactly making AT&T sound smart when it comes to understanding what qualifies as spam.
