Currently the known and beloved AT&T has a monopoly on phone service options for troops in Iraq, which allows AT&T to gouge soldiers, family members, and caring American citizens with outrageous calling card rates that give AT&T over %2000 profit on each call.

Average rates to call the U.S throughout the entire world are less than a cent a minute up to 2 cents at the most. AT&T on the other hand is charging soldiers twenty-one cents a minute to call the U.S from Iraq They are clearly abusing the power of their monopoly, and making tremendous profits charging American soldiers over 25 times the cost to make a call.

According to The Prepaid Press AT&T has manipulated their way to get an EXCLUSIVE contract to install pay phones for soldiers on bases in Iraq. This has allowed AT&T to block any use of any other calling card or calling service other than their calling cards. This now enables them to charge outrageous calling rates to soldiers calling home. They are stealing the money of soldiers who are defending our country and the citizens who support the soldiers by purchasing AT&T calling cards through charities.

The AAFES has organized a charity that allows AT&T to profit off Americans who are helping support soldiers overseas. The charity sells AT&T calling cards online to citizens who would like to purchase and donate calling cards to soldiers in the Middle-East. Citizens buy these calling cards to send to soldiers in the Middle-East but have no idea that the cost per minute that they are paying for is outrageous. These citizens’ good deeds are giving AT&T a massive profit. AT&T is making well over 2000% profit on the actual cost per minute; an article published by the Prepaid Press last year estimated AT&T’s profit at $46 million/year. Yes and these profits are coming from the soldier’s pockets who are sacrificing so much from this country.

With recent developments in the calling card industry there will be hope for soldiers in Iraq to avoid using AT&T and find cheaper and more convenient calling services. Military Direct Dial is preparing to unveil a phone product for soldiers with Iraqi cell phones. The service is prepaid and will allow family to call the cell phone directly. What is amazing about the product is the families calling the cell phone are given a local US phone number that is used to call the phone directly. So families now have a direct line to their soldier in Iraq. The number can be saved in cell phones and used like any other local phone number. Customers can manage their accounts online and prepay for what minutes they will use, so customers don’t have to worry about getting a $1000 dollar phone bill in the mail, they only spend however much money they put in the account.

This new product could be the best thing that happened to soldiers, families and citizens who are being robbed when they purchase or use AT&T prepaid calling cards. Military Direct Dial can play a crucial role in tearing down the monopoly AT&T holds on Iraq calling services for soldiers. And with the product being released in January AT&T’s hold on calling services to Iraq can hopefully be destroyed.