The concept of , of course, is nothing new. Car dealers use it all the time, as do cable companies, travel-booking sites, and -- you guessed it -- phone carriers. How else do you explain the that's been on landline bills for decades? (Hint: there's nothing federal about it.) Even in the realm of wireless carriers, the practice is relatively common; Verizon, for example, has previously for the vague "administrative charge" that appears on its subscribers' bills.

Even Sprint's smartphone surcharge isn't actually new; it's just newly expanded. Sprint had previously imposed the $10-a-month fee onto its 4G phones. What's changed is that the same fee will soon apply to all smartphones, starting with devices purchased after January 30.

Increasing rates is certainly within a company's rights. But let's quit the game-playing, guys, and just tell people what they're really paying. If I'm gonna shell out 80 bucks for your "$69.99 Everything Data plan," list the freakin' thing as $80 -- not $69.99 with a "$10 monthly fee" footnote on the following page.

A little honesty goes a long way.

JR Raphael is a PCWorld contributing editor and the author of the blog. You can find him on both and .