the air

Everyday we wake up and enjoy many of the technologies that make our lives easier and enjoyable. Sometimes, we curse those advances in technology for the added annoyances, but we remain relatively supportive of the technology surrounding us. However, don’t you say to yourself how things would be better if companies weren’t trying to screw you over? Haven’t you ever wondered why companies who market their services to help your life actually create more nuances for you? It’s time businesses changed their practice of squeezing your wallet and move towards helping you out.

Dump the damned 2-year service agreements

NEVER sign up for two year service agreements just so you can get your hands on a new phone for little to no cost. Some careful research will show that you’re only saving an additional $50 or so if you sign a two year service agreement versus a one year service agreement. Companies have you sign those pesky two-year service agreements so that they can lock you in and shove stiff penalties up your ass if you decide to leave before your agreement is over. Check out the Consumerist for ways on how you can take advantage of cellular service and only be stuck for a year with that company.

Ever wonder why SMS isn’t popular in the Americas?

I’m sure all of us have read articles on how Europeans and Asians text message like crazy. There is no doubt that text-messaging, or SMS for short, is on the rise in the Americas, but it is nowhere near the levels of Europe/Asia. In fact, those kids over there are more into picture messaging and video messaging than we are. Why? Two reasons: price and technology. Here, we spend about $0.10 per sent or received text message. In India, all incoming texts are free and outgoing only costs Rs. 1, a fraction of a penny in US dollars. In terms of technology, both Europe and Asia are accustomed to high speed data networks that rival broadband. In fact, in India, you can enjoy speeds faster than EDGE, which is predominant across Cingular’s network. The best part is that all of these things are enjoyed at very little cost. I’ve noticed that companies in Europe and Asia are more willing to absorb costs and invest in long term strategies than their American counterparts. Look at Cingular. They charge me $9.99 for 400 sms/mms/video messages (both incoming and outgoing) and only give me 1 MB internet/GPRS access. For the same price, I can enjoy unlimited internet and unlimited messaging in India with faster rates and more value.

College books are just crazily priced

Have you looked at those college book prices lately? To me, they seem to increase every year with no breaks in between. As a student, I can easily expect to spend anywhere from $300 to over $500 per semester in textbooks. At the same time, students in the UK enjoy lower rates because of subsidized costs. Publishers argue that these subsidies are necessary to encourage developing countries to learn and give under-priviledged children a chance. My argument is how can they expect a college student to pay these abhorrent rates? Sure, some students are wealthy, but I certainly can tell you how hard it is for me to pay for my books. Generally that means weeks of ramen noodles and nothing else. So what do I do? I buy international editions even though publishers “say” that it is illegal. After doing my homework, I know that it is not against any law but the law of the publisher. So damn them all!

What do you think are some ways that American businesses can change or should change? If you could, what would you change? It’s time for some changes, so let’s make sure our thoughts are spoken.

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