Text messaging

[drgnflykisses33]

Hey,
so i have been arguing with a few people on how when you get a text msg you automatically get charged for it (considering you dont have unlimited) if you open it up to read it or not. But others say that no if you just hit the exit button then go to your inbox and read the first line of it and dont even open it and delete it right away it doesnt charge you.

for some reason this just doesnt make sense to me because its being sent to your number. so you got charged for it! PLEASE someone help me so i can know what the right answer is!

i have been trying to find the answer to my question for A VERY LONG TIME! so if anyone has any idea as to what it is that would be sooo nice!


Thanks!!
-K

[Andy]

It doesn't matter whether or not you actually READ the message...as soon as it is delivered to your handset you are charged. The network knows that the message has been DELIVERED to your handset- it has no way of knowing whether or not you READ the message.
Hope this helps,
Andy

[drgnflykisses33]

gosh see i knew it!

now the only thing is do you know if there is anything on a website that says it so i can totally prove it other then a forum? so that those poeple can see that I am right! golly im gunna bet them 50 bucks first lol

thanks!!!!

[Andy]

Lol, just let them come on this forum and show them this thread

[Jay2TheRescue]

Originally Posted by drgnflykisses33

gosh see i knew it!

now the only thing is do you know if there is anything on a website that says it so i can totally prove it other then a forum? so that those poeple can see that I am right! golly im gunna bet them 50 bucks first lol

thanks!!!!

Try this. send yourself a text, then delete it w/o reading it. When you look on your online account management it will still show that you were sent a message.

-Jay

[Telekom]

Originally Posted by Andy

It doesn't matter whether or not you actually READ the message...as soon as it is delivered to your handset you are charged. The network knows that the message has been DELIVERED to your handset- it has no way of knowing whether or not you READ the message.
Hope this helps,
Andy

Furthermore it matters what technology you are using and how the text message makes it to you. With GSM at any rate you are not charged for the text message til it arrives at your phone. Sending messages to other technology phones (CDMA) you will not get the confirmation (if you have it on) that it got to the phone, but only that it got to the gateway that handles interaction with other carriers. A few years ago if you were a GSM subscriber you could not send text messages to CDMA subscribers. Gateways were put in that will allow messaging between technologies and now you can. However, when a GSM subscriber sends a message to a CDMA subscriber it does not go directly to that network it goes to a gateway first. That's why you'll get a confirmation message that your call was "delivered" and all that means is that it was delivered to the gateway and not to the phone. GSM phones on the other hand should give a true message. You can get three different confirmation messages with GSM: delivered, pending or failed. You will not get this when sending text messages to CDMA operators.

[dmapr]

Originally Posted by Telekom

Furthermore it matters what technology you are using and how the text message makes it to you. With GSM at any rate you are not charged for the text message til it arrives at your phone. Sending messages to other technology phones (CDMA) you will not get the confirmation (if you have it on) that it got to the phone, but only that it got to the gateway that handles interaction with other carriers. A few years ago if you were a GSM subscriber you could not send text messages to CDMA subscribers. Gateways were put in that will allow messaging between technologies and now you can. However, when a GSM subscriber sends a message to a CDMA subscriber it does not go directly to that network it goes to a gateway first. That's why you'll get a confirmation message that your call was "delivered" and all that means is that it was delivered to the gateway and not to the phone. GSM phones on the other hand should give a true message. You can get three different confirmation messages with GSM: delivered, pending or failed. You will not get this when sending text messages to CDMA operators.

Only if the carrier supports it — it's not a guarantee with GSM. For instance, Cingular/AT&T does not support delivery reports, so you either don't get anything back or get a bogus delivery report saying all is good.

[Telekom]

Originally Posted by dmapr

Only if the carrier supports it — it's not a guarantee with GSM. For instance, Cingular/AT&T does not support delivery reports, so you either don't get anything back or get a bogus delivery report saying all is good.

Many carriers may not "support" it, but if you can configure your phone to send delivery reports you will receive them despite no "support." Many SIMs will not give you the delivery report menu, but if you insert a SIM that does support it you can enable delivery reports.

Fido does not support it either, but I enabled delivery reports by using a non-Fido SIM that has the delivery reports option enabled. And it's more of a guarantee with GSM than it is with other technology such as CDMA where there is no "real" delivery reporting at all and just the acknowledgement that if reached the gateway.

[dmapr]

Originally Posted by Telekom

Many carriers may not "support" it, but if you can configure your phone to send delivery reports you will receive them despite no "support." Many SIMs will not give you the delivery report menu, but if you insert a SIM that does support it you can enable delivery reports.

Fido does not support it either, but I enabled delivery reports by using a non-Fido SIM that has the delivery reports option enabled. And it's more of a guarantee with GSM than it is with other technology such as CDMA where there is no "real" delivery reporting at all and just the acknowledgement that if reached the gateway.

I can enable it all right on my SIM — the delivery report stays in the "Pending" state forever or I receive a "Delivered" report regardless of what happened to the message. The same thing when people send an SMS to my number with delivery report enabled — they can get a "Delivered" report and I may never see the message.

[drgnflykisses33]

ok so ya'll started to use acronyms and sooo that doesnt really help me lol because i dont know what they mean! but thanks for trying to explain something smart! so it is true that no matter if you open it or not when you recieve a msg you are charged for it right? thats all i need to know to prove my boyfriend wrong

[hme83]

Yes - if the text message has been delivered to your phone, regardless of whether you open it or not you will be charged for it.

[Andy]

Originally Posted by Telekom

Furthermore it matters what technology you are using and how the text message makes it to you. With GSM at any rate you are not charged for the text message til it arrives at your phone. Sending messages to other technology phones (CDMA) you will not get the confirmation (if you have it on) that it got to the phone, but only that it got to the gateway that handles interaction with other carriers. A few years ago if you were a GSM subscriber you could not send text messages to CDMA subscribers. Gateways were put in that will allow messaging between technologies and now you can. However, when a GSM subscriber sends a message to a CDMA subscriber it does not go directly to that network it goes to a gateway first. That's why you'll get a confirmation message that your call was "delivered" and all that means is that it was delivered to the gateway and not to the phone. GSM phones on the other hand should give a true message. You can get three different confirmation messages with GSM: delivered, pending or failed. You will not get this when sending text messages to CDMA operators.

On Verizon CDMA there actually is a delivery confirmation when sending SMS from Verizon to Verizon. The SMS you sent will show up in your outbox and will show you the time your text was sent, as well as the time your SMS was delivered to the handset.

[SmArTeStChIlD421]

T-Mobile has delivery reports.........

also............i know that some carriers have a policy that if a text message sits in the network inbox for a certain period of time but never gets sent to the phone because the phone has been off the message gets automatically deleted.............i think Virgin Mobile has a limit of like 72 hours.................will you get charged if this is the case