Nickel and Dime
Have you ever signed up for a service you thought would cost $60, then get a bill for $75? Or discover that free bottle of water in the hotel cost you $4?
Everyone seems to be getting on the “fees” bandwagon. the Post says charging fees works because consumers aren’t paying attention. That might be part of it, but I also think the fees work because customers don’t have any choice but “do without.”
The New Business Philosophy — a company exists to maximize shareholder value — naturally leads to a customer philosophy that says “if you don’t like it, lump it.” The real customers are the shareholders. And what are you going to do, change phone companies? The other ones charge the same fees, too. In some cases you might not even be able to change — thanks to deregulation fervor on the Federal level, the monopolies that were crushed in the twenties are back alive and well today.
We’re going to have to do something, people. Especially if we prize the capitalistic system. We have to regulate it to save it.
