Week Adjourned: 8.13.10

Top Class Actions

No Answer for No Answer Charges? A couple of major players in the telecommunications game got hit with class actions this week. First up—AT&T. The suit alleges violations of federal truth-in-billing laws, false advertising and deceptive trade practices under New York law, and breach of contract, among other things. 

Lead plaintiff, Los Angeles resident Kenneth Thelian, claims he was charged $12.90 partly for calls that he did not answer. He allegedly complained to AT&T who reversed $8 of the charges, but the company representative “did not adequately explain why these charges were incurred.”

Thelian faced a further $15.81 in roaming charges while traveling in Montreal, Canada in August 2005, again for calls he did not answer. Then, in February and March of 2007, Thelian was billed $92.72. “The bill did not indicate which of these charges were for calls that he did not answer while traveling abroad,” the suit alleges. 

So, maybe time to be checking those phone bills…

And, second up—T-Mobile. This class action alleges that the company puts limits on its unlimited data plan. Ummm. who would have thought…

The suit claims that advertisements for T-Mobile’s “Unlimited Web & E-mail” plans, offered for both Blackberry and other brands of smartphones, promise the consumer access to Continue reading “Week Adjourned: 8.13.10”

Week Adjourned: 7.23.10

Top Class Actions

HiPhone, HiPhone, it’s Off to Court we Go…Well, all you iPhone enthusiasts are clearly disappointed with the new iPhone 4 and its apparent lack of receptivity—would that be an appropriate term to describe an alleged antenna design flaw?

Let’s get to the point. Apple and AT&T got hit with a class action lawsuit filing this week, “seeking relief for consumers who purchased iPhone 4 cellular phones.” 

To be blunt, the only way you could not know about the iPhone 4 antenna problem is if you live on another planet—or in a cave in some remote corner of the world that is not part of AT&T’s network. No doubt all you diehard Blackberry fans must be lovin it!

According to the complaint, the new iPhone 4 sold 1.7 million in its first week of sales, a figure that reportedly comes from Apple. That’s a loyal fan base. And woe betide you if you piss them off. 

Here’s the skinny—”the phone retails for $199.00 for the 16GB model or $299.00 for the 32GB model with a 2-year contract (or $599.00 16GB / $699.00 32GB without a contract). Users pay Continue reading “Week Adjourned: 7.23.10”