The $10,000 Mobile Phone Bill Forces MCI Mobile Phones Off In Iraq

from the whoooops dept

Remember last year when everyone was a bit surprised that MCI was providing mobile phone service in Iraq? After all, this was a disgraced, bankrupt (still) company that didn't even offer mobile service in the US -- and somehow they were providing it in Iraq. Well, now those phones are being shut off, after a little glitch where many users of the mobile phones in Iraq never received any bills, making them think that the $1.25/minute calls were actually free. The end result? $10,000+ phone bills finally started showing up. The State Department, believing they've already put enough money into the "rebuild MCI" fund, has ordered the phones turned off and told people to start using the phones on their desks instead.