Cingular Increases Rate for SMS

According to Jason Chen at Gizmodo, Cingular is increasing its rate on SMS text messages from 10 cents to 15 cents.  Jason writes,

"Starting Jan 21, 2007, you'll have 30 days to give them a call and break your contract, provided you're not currently subscribed to an SMS package. Why the generosity? You can thank Cingular's own policy that allows customers to terminate their service if there's a change in the contract terms. Upgrading fees from 10 to 15 cents per SMS counts as a change. "

For most people, this probably will not make much difference. Most business professionals I talk with are not big users of SMS, but it does offer some advantages. For one, text messages will often get through when email won't when you're in remote areas. The Palm Treo (PDA/smartphone) offers a chat-like interface that uses SMS to send messages and logs the chats with date and time by person. And, it's a quick way to send a message to another person with a mobile phone.

This may be a sign that phone carriers are beginning to evaluate and adjust prices. Keep an eye out for further changes.

I searched the Cingular website but could not find details of the change, but I found the same information on GigaOM. The change does not appear to apply to customers with an SMS plan which bundles a certain number of outgoing text messages for one rate.

UPDATE: See additional information about how this change may affect you. Why it may be tough to actually break your contract.