AT&T And Verizon Offering Free Calls And Texts To Japan

AT&T and Verizon both announced today that they will be offering free calls and texts to Japan in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunamis that have ravaged the country. Customers can call and text loved ones in Japan without incurring any additional monthly charges.

AT&T's offer is good for calls and texts made until March 31. Postpaid wireless customers will not be charged for international calls or text messages to Japan made from the United States or Puerto Rico. Residential landline service customers can also enjoy up to 60 minutes of adjusted billing relief. Wireless customers can text "redcross" to 90999 to give a $10 donation to help with relief efforts.

Verizon's offer is good until April 20th. And Verizon FIOS customers will now receive TV Japan free until March 18th to keep up with news in the country. The carrier has also set up a program for customers to easily donate money to different charities involved with the Japan relief effort:

* ADRA Relief: text SUPPORT to 85944

* American Red Cross Relief: text REDCROSS to 90999

* Convoy of Hope: text TSUNAMI or SUNAMI to 50555

* GlobalGiving: text JAPAN to 50555

* International Medical Corps: text MED to 80888

* Mercy Corps: text MERCY to 25383

* Salvation Army: text JAPAN to 80888

* Save the Children Federation, Inc.: text JAPAN or TSUNAMI to 20222

* World Relief Corp. of National Association of Evangelicals: text WAVE to 50555

* World Vision, Inc.: text 4JAPAN or 4TSUNAMI to 20222

AT&T Press Release:

AT&T Offers Wireless, Wireline Billing Relief for Consumers Calling and Texting Family, Friends in Japan

DALLAS, March 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — AT&T* today announced it has implemented international calling and texting support efforts for U.S. residential wireless and wireline consumers trying to connect with loved ones in Japan, following last week's tragic earthquake and tsunami.

Effective beginning last week, March 11, and continuing through March 31, AT&T wireless postpaid customers will not be charged for:

* International long distance usage from the United States and Puerto Rico to Japan

* Text messages to Japan, originated from a U.S. wireless number

In addition, and also effective March 11 through March 31, residential wireline customers can seek credits for up to 60 minutes of direct dial calling to Japan:

* Upon receiving their wireline bill, customers may call AT&T to receive adjusted calling for up to 60 minutes. In other words, no charges for up to 60 minutes of call time from the United States to Japan between March 11 and March 31.

For any of the above activity, customers will either see no charges reflected on their monthly statement, or they will see a full credit applied to their statement for activity between March 11 and March 31.

"We want to help our customers connect with loved ones in Japan in anyway we can," said Mark Collins, senior vice president, Voice and Data Products, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. "Connecting with family and friends is most important at times like this- we want to make it as easy and worry free as possible for our customers."

Still available, AT&T wireless customers can text "redcross" to 90999 to give a $10 donation to help the Red Cross with disaster support efforts in the area. No text message fees apply.

And, TV Japan – the 24 hour Japanese news channel – is available for free through March 17 to all U-verse® TV subscribers, allowing viewers to follow the news and recovery efforts. TV Japan can be found on channel 3680.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

Verizon Press Release:

Verizon Makes Calls Free To Japan From March 11 To April 10

03/14/2011

NEW YORK, NY — To help its customers contact loved ones in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami, Verizon is making calls to Japan free for most wireless and residential customers through April 10.

All Verizon Wireless post-paid customers will receive free calling to Japan from March 11 through April 10. Post-paid customers are those who receive a monthly bill from the company. In addition, Verizon Wireless post-paid customers in the U.S. will receive free text and multimedia messaging to Japan for the same time period.

Verizon Wireless has also made it easy for customers to text donations to a host of non-profit organizations responding to the earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Customers can easily make a $10 donation by simply sending a text message and may choose from 10 organizations aiding those in need in Japan.

All calls made from a Verizon residential landline to Japan will be rated at $0.00 per minute, from March 11 through April 10. Customers with Verizon World Plan (300, 500 or unlimited minutes of long-distance calling) can call Japan without using any minutes from their time-allotment blocks.

Additionally, Verizon Prepaid Phone Card charges for all long-distance calls placed to Japan from the United States will also be waived from March 11 until April 10.

The company is also providing FiOS TV customers who are not subscribed to the channel free access to TV Japan through March 17. The channel location is 1770.

* Only long-distance usage charges associated with calls made from residential landlines terminating to wireline or wireless destinations in Japan will be waived from Mar. 11 – April 10. All other fees including taxes, surcharges, monthly recurring charges (MRCs), minimum spend levels (MSLs), monthly minimum charges (MMCs), etc will continue to apply. Post-paid calling card charges to Japan will also be waived.

** If long distance calling fees were charged, credits will be issued in a future bill statement.

About Verizon

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