ring tones...... sneaky bastards

How can an SMS cost $4.50? I thought they were about $0.20?

Mike Harding

This is half the problem with these types of "providers". What a neat money making idea. Set up a server in your back room, spend a bit on TV or Net advertising and get fools to pay $4 or more a week to receive stooooopid ringtones and wallpapers for their mobile phones. Later the consumer decides it's all too silly and wants to cancel. Huh! Now try stopping the automatic downloads. Almost impossible unless you keep the phone switched off 24/7. And the bills keep coming in......

Moral of the story. Get one of your gullible mates to subscribe to these junk services before you waste your money.

Cheers, Alan

This is what I got back. I hope they got the message this time.

Please be advised that your mobile number has been removed from our ringtone subscription service on 191188. No further content will de delivered to your handset.

Kind Regards, Stealthnet Support

Especially that stupid frog pretending to ride a bike

Correct , but you are charged for the service they provide , in this a new ring tone on your phone .

the news

in there

$18. Each

I didn't

caught

phone number

hard to

request via

you make

They're premium SMS numbers. In this case it was probably also "receiver pays" which means that they initiate the SMS and you're billed for receiving it. That's how they run a subscription service, they regularly send you content which is a charged premium SMS.

To the OP, I'd take it up with your mobile phone carrier. Premium SMS charges are apparently fairly easy for consumers to get reversed, because of the sneaky way that many operators work.

Such as??

service,

SMS

I guess you're asking what's sneaky? Read the original post. :)

Most of the TV ads have the pricing and conditions in tiny font, sometimes displayed for only a few seconds. Not much different to the TV ads for 0055 numbers several years ago - if you were too busy looking at the busty girl wringing out a car wash sponge you would have missed it!

Back to premium SMS, if the carrier and/or content providers routinely refused to refund a "I didn't know I was going to be charged for this/this much/every week" request then there would likely be some issues with consumers taking their own action.