This day won’t be here this time next year…

Leap year, what an interesting concept. Honestly, the orbit of the Earth around the sun is 99.9 % perfect; we were able to create a time standard based on this. That missing .1 % comes today, an aggregate of time over 4 years to be synthesized into one random day tacked on to the end of February. It’s basically like living through 4 years in one day kind of, today is an extra day that we don’t get all the time…sorry just some random thoughts here about an interesting day…

Real thoughts now. I ran into this article over at Engadget.com. I would consider it a little more of an offshoot as far as my general topics are concerned, but it really caught my interest. What the article basically says is that a new bill being introduced to the House and Senate would make it mandatory for cell phone carriers to offer contract free phones.

 ”The bill, sponsored by Massachusetts Rep. Ed Markey, would require carriers to sell contract-free phones, provide rate plan information in a “clear, plain, and conspicuous manner,” disclose any phone subsidies hidden in the plan’s price, and offer price-comparable plans with no subsidy or early termination fee. That means you’d finally know exactly how much a plan would bill you every month including taxes and fees, it’d be easier to see how much devices like the iPhone are marked up, and most importantly, it’d be way easier to switch carriers to get better deals.”

I know this is only a small throw away from my usual ramblings about the internet, but it is still somewhat connected. These contract free phones will still be able to access the internet in the same manner they could before, but now it is contract free. Someone using their equipment with one carrier can instantly switch services depending on who has the best technical support and services. I think that this will lead to a steady increase in the use of the internet on cell phones. People are hesitant to lock themselves into a contract with web access through their cell phone when they know they only have a minimal grasp of how to utilize the internet as a resource on their cell phones. This no contract/clear and concise bill statements will allow people to feel a little bit more at ease concerning their equipment, possibly pushing them towards using their handset’s for their intended purposes. Basically, I’m just excited to see if this passes. I have always had issue with the way cell phone providers operate. I know everyone is just as motivated by the almighty dollar as I am, but Verizon and Cingular could at least cover it up a little, I mean, I at least want a pretty face reaching into my pocket to take the money out of it. It will be nice to finally know just how exactly my $49.99 a month contract turns into $80+ every month…