To the disappointment of lower-income residents in AT&T’s 13-state pay-phone coverage area – including Texas and California – AT&T has announced that they will be shutting down their pay-phone service by the end of 2008. The pay-phone side of the business has been a money-loser for AT&T and it looks like they’ve had just about enough of this whole giving-the-less-fortunate-a-communications-outlet operation.
But, what about all those lower-income customers that rely on pay-phones to keep in touch with friends and family? Well, there’s always the pre-paid wireless option from AT&T. And, on that note, we’d love to see AT&T introduce more price-friendly pre-paid (and even post-paid) wireless plans with free or low-cost mobile phones. Everyone deserves to have access to a telephone, and even if the move makes business sense, AT&T should see that they have a civic responsibility to the American population.
How’s about it, AT&T? Cheaper pre-paid wireless rates without daily service charges would be just the thing to make up for all those dead pay-phones. You know, unless you want everyone to keep referring to you as the bid, bad corporation that screwed lower-income Americans out of telephone access.
[Via: Reuters]