Jennygirl
08-16-2007, 07:08 AM
PITTSBURGH -- Blogger Justine Ezarik is one of the many people who rushed out to buy an Apple iPhone in June.
But she just got her first bill, and it's much larger than she imagined.
How big? Well, it came in a box.
In fact, AT&T needed 300 pages to list all of Ezarik's charges, which totaled about $275.
Most of that paper was used to detail the thousands of text messages she sent and received.
"This is a lot of waste," Ezarik told WTAE Channel 4 Action News. "It's a cardboard box, a ton of pages, and plus, it was almost $10 to send this, so it does not make any sense."
Ezarik said she likes to send a lot of text messages.
"On average, I usually send 30,000 to 35,000," she said.
Ezarik took the opportunity to make a point about conserving paper.
She recorded a short video -- set to the music of an iPhone commercial -- and posted it on YouTube.com and her blog, TastyBlogSnack.com.
"I have an iPhone and I had to switch to AT&T. So, that's wonderful. Well, I got my first AT&T bill, right here in a box," she says in the video.
The one-minute clip, shot in a coffee shop, has been viewed more than 200,000 times.
It shows Ezarik going through all 300 pages of her bill and telling viewers to "save a forest" by using e-billing.
Ezarik said not everybody got the message of her video though.
"A lot of people said, 'I'm going to beat you next time. I'm going to get more pages,'" said Ezarik. "I was like, guys, that is not the point. Sign up for e-billing. It's just a lot of waste that we don't need to be doing."
AT&T said it rarely sends bills in a box, and its customers do have the option to select e-billing instead.
But she just got her first bill, and it's much larger than she imagined.
How big? Well, it came in a box.
In fact, AT&T needed 300 pages to list all of Ezarik's charges, which totaled about $275.
Most of that paper was used to detail the thousands of text messages she sent and received.
"This is a lot of waste," Ezarik told WTAE Channel 4 Action News. "It's a cardboard box, a ton of pages, and plus, it was almost $10 to send this, so it does not make any sense."
Ezarik said she likes to send a lot of text messages.
"On average, I usually send 30,000 to 35,000," she said.
Ezarik took the opportunity to make a point about conserving paper.
She recorded a short video -- set to the music of an iPhone commercial -- and posted it on YouTube.com and her blog, TastyBlogSnack.com.
"I have an iPhone and I had to switch to AT&T. So, that's wonderful. Well, I got my first AT&T bill, right here in a box," she says in the video.
The one-minute clip, shot in a coffee shop, has been viewed more than 200,000 times.
It shows Ezarik going through all 300 pages of her bill and telling viewers to "save a forest" by using e-billing.
Ezarik said not everybody got the message of her video though.
"A lot of people said, 'I'm going to beat you next time. I'm going to get more pages,'" said Ezarik. "I was like, guys, that is not the point. Sign up for e-billing. It's just a lot of waste that we don't need to be doing."
AT&T said it rarely sends bills in a box, and its customers do have the option to select e-billing instead.