AT&T adds new "administrative fee" to our phone bills, adds up to hundreds of millions in extra charges each year

AT&T has quietly added a new administrative fee that is now appearing on the bills of postpaid customers. The fee is for $0.61 and shows up as a line item under the surcharges and other fees section. According to The Verge who spoke with AT&T, the new fee was enacted help cover expenses for items such as cell sites and maintenance.

If you're a postpaid customer, you'll see the new charge on your bill starting with bills that are cut after May 1st of this year. With AT&T's subscriber base of over 70 million users, AT&T will see an increase in revenue of almost half a billion a year.

AT&T tells us that the administrative fee will "help cover certain expenses, such as interconnection and cell site rents and maintenance." It also added that the charge is "consistent with similar fees charged by other carriers."

Carriers calculate fees differently with some bundling them into other categories. Compared to Verizon and Sprint, AT&T's fees are slightly lower. While $0.61 doesn't seem like a lot of money per customer, it ends up being a very healthy amount when collected from all subscribers. If you have AT&T, did you see the charge appear on your most recent bill? If you have another carrier, how much money do you currently pay in surcharges and fees?

Source: The Verge

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