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Rumor: AT&T Declared Insane: iPhone tethering to cost an additional $55/month, MMS launching in July

Categories: AT&T, iPhone
By: , IntoMobile
Thursday, June 18th, 2009 at 10:53 PM

While Will is enjoying sunny California and playing the “I’ll show you mine if you show me yours” game with his iPhone, a new rumor has just cropped up on the internet regarding iPhone tethering. Appmodo claims to have been informed by a source within AT&T that tethering will cost an additional $55 per month; I’m not fucking joking. They’ve also been told that MMS will be launched in mid July, which is much more plausible.

Usually I don’t comment on rumors since they’re a waste of my time, and yours, but something tells me this is really going to happen. Thanks to the internet, the world is a smaller place. Hardcore iPhone fans know will soon find out that places like Austria get tethering for free, and the Nordic countries have had unlimited data plans that allow tethering for less than $20 a month for several years now. Granted, $14 will get you unlimited 384 kbps here in Finland, if you want unlimited 2 Mbps data it is around $42, which is fairly reasonable.

Don’t let this news upset your day too much since it still isn’t official and AT&T has a way of bending to the demands of the iPhone mob as we saw with the extension of eligibility for subsidies.

Update: AT&T used their Facebook page to let the world know that the $55 figure is false. That doesn’t really mean much since it could be $54.99 and they would not by lying:

TETHERING

There are a lot of reports out there, but wanted you guys to know that rumors of $55 tethering plan on top of an unlimited data plan are false. We’ll have more news to share when the iPhone tethering option is closer to launch.

About The Author

Stefan Constantinescu

Stefan Constantinescu (@WhatTheBit on Twitter) has loved technology since as far back as he can remember. It started with computers, but in the past few years his passion has turned to mobile devices. As a mobile phone enthusiast who lives and breathes devices that connect to the internet, he knows he is not alone with this radical fascination of all things wireless. He is strongly opinionated and enjoys a good debate so leave comments in his posts and he’ll get back to you! Stefan began blogging as a hobby in the fall of 2006 and joined IntoMobile in the summer of 2007. Later he got a job at Nokia in March 2008, but as of June 2009 he has rejoined the IntoMobile team. He is currently based out of Helsinki, Finland.

  • RF9

    Uh, $85 total? Um, No.
    I can only assume they meant $55 TOTAL, or $25 on top of the $30 you already pay. That would make it $5 CHEAPER than thethering on any other phone on AT&T which is $60,
    If it were $85 total, that would be redonkulous and only encourage more illegal tethering.

  • Galen20K

    ATT Stinks anyways so Most wont even Care.

    I want Chicken and CHi-Chi’s, I Want Taste Buds!

  • Jay

    There is no way this is true. If it is, its all the more reason for me to leave AT&T when they lose the iPhone contract. I’ve been a customer for 10+ years and all there have been are let downs since this phone came out. They will surely roll out a larger 3G network right before they lose the contract so they can keep some customers, but I’ll still be heading to Verizon.

    I mean seriously.. They cant even figure out mms.

  • Angeldust787621

    Yup apple is the best but AT&T has no limits
    when it comes to greed bastards!!! I sure hope
    that apple starts to participate their iPhone with
    other cell phone companies. Because AT&T is not
    going to cut it for me no more. I have 3 iPhones In my
    account and they make me pay $30.00 per iPhone.
    They can but they don’t want to make an iPhone family plan
    that’s some bull. If they start to charge for tethering
    I’m moving elsewhere and unlocking my iPhone!!!

  • Tyler

    I have Verizon, and it only cost me ten dollars a month for unlimited tethering on top of my unlimited smartphone data plan. Although I don’t have a speed of 384kbps, I am getting a decent 50kbps here in the united states.