Verizon blames school text provider in dispute over “spam” fee

After being criticized for charging a new fee that could kill a free texting service for teachers and students, Verizon is trying to deflect blame. Now Verizon is offering to reverse the fee for K-12 users of the free Remind service. "Verizon will not charge Remind fees as long as they don't begin charging K-12 schools, educators, parents, and students using its free text message service," Verizon said. "Despite this offer, made Tuesday, Remind has not changed its position that it will stop sending free texts to Verizon customers who use the service regarding school closures, classroom activities and other critical information." But limiting the offer to K-12 users means the fee would still be charged for preschools, day-care centers, and youth sports coaches who use the free Remind service. It's also not clear how K-12 users would verify their K-12 status in order to qualify for the free texting service.