The end of CPaaS: A closer look at our pricing strategy

Robert Vis

7 Feb 2024

Pricing

1 min read

The end of CPaaS: A closer look at our pricing strategy

Key Takeaways

    • Bird CRM ends CPaaS price manipulation. One global low rate ensures fairness, replacing complex, inflated telecom pricing structures.

    • SMS has become a commodity. Margins are dropping to zero, pushing value creation higher in the marketing and customer experience chain.

    • Transparency drives trust. Bird’s new pricing removes hidden markups, with rates like $0.02 per SMS versus competitors’ $0.057+.

    • Firewall control distorts competition. Some providers restrict network access to inflate prices—Bird’s model restores openness and fairness.

    • Growth through reinvestment. Lower messaging costs enable businesses to reallocate budgets toward customer experience and innovation.

    • The CPaaS model is evolving. The future lies in unified CRM-driven engagement rather than commoditized delivery.

    • Bird calls for industry reform. The company invites competitors to adopt transparent, customer-first pricing for sustainable progress.

Q&A Highlights

  • What is changing in Bird’s pricing model?

    Bird is moving away from complex CPaaS pricing by offering one simple, transparent global rate for all customers—no negotiation, no hidden markups.

  • Why is the CPaaS model ending?

    SMS has been commoditized. With margins approaching zero, the industry must shift its focus to value-added customer experiences powered by CRM intelligence.

  • How does Bird’s pricing compare to competitors like Sinch?

    Bird CRM now charges $0.02 per SMS, significantly lower than Sinch’s $0.057, enabling universal savings regardless of customer size or volume.

  • What are firewall markups and why are they a problem?

    Firewall providers often restrict access to carrier networks, creating small monopolies and allowing artificial price inflation. Bird’s open approach eliminates this.

  • How does this strategy benefit businesses?

    Lower SMS costs free up budgets for innovation, allowing companies to reinvest in customer experience, automation, and CRM-driven engagement.

  • What’s Bird’s long-term goal with this pricing change?

    To democratize access to communication tools, dismantle opaque pricing systems, and redefine how businesses connect with customers globally.

The Market Has Moved On: Ending CPaaS Price Manipulation

We are putting an end to inflated prices and price manipulation; one low price for every customer.

In the last couple of days, there has been a lot of noise around our price drops. Many wonder how it’s possible and what we are looking to achieve. In this post, we hope to give you the first few answers.

Here is the summary: the CPaaS market has moved on. SMS has commoditized, and margins are inevitably going to 0. This is market dynamics pur sang and it is what is right for the consumer. However, smart businesses can still get more data from each SMS message to maximize their marketing ROI.

Meanwhile, a new opportunity is on the rise higher up in the value chain. Businesses are creating all sorts of great experiences that improve the lives of consumers and create possibilities to monetize.

But the telecom market has gotten too comfortable.

On one side, they have been able to charge unnecessarily high fees because pricing is complex and it is difficult for buyers to monitor prices across all countries and carriers. Businesses need strategies for deflecting inquiries to lower cost channels to manage communication expenses effectively.

On the other side, some parts of the market have ventured into outright unethical practices by creating small-scale monopolies and manipulating prices.

We truly believe that the CPaaS business model is coming to an end and are looking to spearhead the change.

It is inevitable and in the interest of the consumer. So why fight it?

We are putting an end to inflated prices and price manipulation; one low price for every customer.

In the last couple of days, there has been a lot of noise around our price drops. Many wonder how it’s possible and what we are looking to achieve. In this post, we hope to give you the first few answers.

Here is the summary: the CPaaS market has moved on. SMS has commoditized, and margins are inevitably going to 0. This is market dynamics pur sang and it is what is right for the consumer. However, smart businesses can still get more data from each SMS message to maximize their marketing ROI.

Meanwhile, a new opportunity is on the rise higher up in the value chain. Businesses are creating all sorts of great experiences that improve the lives of consumers and create possibilities to monetize.

But the telecom market has gotten too comfortable.

On one side, they have been able to charge unnecessarily high fees because pricing is complex and it is difficult for buyers to monitor prices across all countries and carriers. Businesses need strategies for deflecting inquiries to lower cost channels to manage communication expenses effectively.

On the other side, some parts of the market have ventured into outright unethical practices by creating small-scale monopolies and manipulating prices.

We truly believe that the CPaaS business model is coming to an end and are looking to spearhead the change.

It is inevitable and in the interest of the consumer. So why fight it?

We are putting an end to inflated prices and price manipulation; one low price for every customer.

In the last couple of days, there has been a lot of noise around our price drops. Many wonder how it’s possible and what we are looking to achieve. In this post, we hope to give you the first few answers.

Here is the summary: the CPaaS market has moved on. SMS has commoditized, and margins are inevitably going to 0. This is market dynamics pur sang and it is what is right for the consumer. However, smart businesses can still get more data from each SMS message to maximize their marketing ROI.

Meanwhile, a new opportunity is on the rise higher up in the value chain. Businesses are creating all sorts of great experiences that improve the lives of consumers and create possibilities to monetize.

But the telecom market has gotten too comfortable.

On one side, they have been able to charge unnecessarily high fees because pricing is complex and it is difficult for buyers to monitor prices across all countries and carriers. Businesses need strategies for deflecting inquiries to lower cost channels to manage communication expenses effectively.

On the other side, some parts of the market have ventured into outright unethical practices by creating small-scale monopolies and manipulating prices.

We truly believe that the CPaaS business model is coming to an end and are looking to spearhead the change.

It is inevitable and in the interest of the consumer. So why fight it?

Our long-term strategy

A key pillar of our new Bird CRM strategy is to offer the lowest possible pricing globally, leveraging the deep integrations we have with our carrier partners across SMS. If we reduce costs, our customers can reinvest funds to accelerate their growth. And if they grow, we grow. Cost optimization includes technical considerations like email file size management for better performance.

For that reason, we are slashing prices 65% in Sweden and 40% in the Netherlands. Here's the straightforward math: with Bird CRM, you pay just $0.02 per SMS, compared to Sinch's $0.057. This means significant savings with Bird CRM, irrespective of your current rates.

A key pillar of our new Bird CRM strategy is to offer the lowest possible pricing globally, leveraging the deep integrations we have with our carrier partners across SMS. If we reduce costs, our customers can reinvest funds to accelerate their growth. And if they grow, we grow. Cost optimization includes technical considerations like email file size management for better performance.

For that reason, we are slashing prices 65% in Sweden and 40% in the Netherlands. Here's the straightforward math: with Bird CRM, you pay just $0.02 per SMS, compared to Sinch's $0.057. This means significant savings with Bird CRM, irrespective of your current rates.

A key pillar of our new Bird CRM strategy is to offer the lowest possible pricing globally, leveraging the deep integrations we have with our carrier partners across SMS. If we reduce costs, our customers can reinvest funds to accelerate their growth. And if they grow, we grow. Cost optimization includes technical considerations like email file size management for better performance.

For that reason, we are slashing prices 65% in Sweden and 40% in the Netherlands. Here's the straightforward math: with Bird CRM, you pay just $0.02 per SMS, compared to Sinch's $0.057. This means significant savings with Bird CRM, irrespective of your current rates.

So, what does that look like?

Consider this: a local Swedish customer familiar with the market might already be paying less than $0.057 per SMS, while others are paying significantly more. With Bird, discounts are for everyone. All customers will find Bird CRM more cost-effective.

And then there are the artificial firewall markups. What many people don’t know is that Sinch and others are involved in the firewall business, supposedly safeguarding carriers from fraud. What they are really doing is controlling access with the ability to significantly increase pricing. This creates poor customer experiences and is why businesses should never leave their customers hanging with unreliable service. How this works is that when you give a carrier a firewall, you can restrict access to the network, forcing other carriers and competitors to go exclusively through the firewall provider. This gives them a small-scale monopoly.

As a result, the vendor can control network pricing and choose to influence it. In practice, that means that this translates to sudden, unexpected price increases. This is what happened to us recently when we got “Sinched”, and prices increased to $0.37 for Pakistan Jazz (see screenshot below).

Message saying prices increased to $0.37

This brings me back to my initial point. While there has been a lot of noise around our change in direction, we believe the future we describe is inevitable. SMS has been commoditized, value has moved up the chain, and too many businesses are profiting from unethical business practices.

This market has been through many inflection points and this is us saying, it is about to happen again. So we invite Sinch and all the others to adapt to the new market dynamics and join us in doing what is best for the customers. Success in today's market requires setting people and teams up for virtual success with the right tools and strategies.

Join us on our mission at bird.com

Become a customer through customer@bird.com

Send your thoughts, good or bad, to angry@bird.com.

You can find me on X @robertdvis.

Pricing disclaimer: Pricing information contained in this article is accurate as of 05/02/2024. To see the most current pricing and offers, please visit bird.com/pricing.

Consider this: a local Swedish customer familiar with the market might already be paying less than $0.057 per SMS, while others are paying significantly more. With Bird, discounts are for everyone. All customers will find Bird CRM more cost-effective.

And then there are the artificial firewall markups. What many people don’t know is that Sinch and others are involved in the firewall business, supposedly safeguarding carriers from fraud. What they are really doing is controlling access with the ability to significantly increase pricing. This creates poor customer experiences and is why businesses should never leave their customers hanging with unreliable service. How this works is that when you give a carrier a firewall, you can restrict access to the network, forcing other carriers and competitors to go exclusively through the firewall provider. This gives them a small-scale monopoly.

As a result, the vendor can control network pricing and choose to influence it. In practice, that means that this translates to sudden, unexpected price increases. This is what happened to us recently when we got “Sinched”, and prices increased to $0.37 for Pakistan Jazz (see screenshot below).

Message saying prices increased to $0.37

This brings me back to my initial point. While there has been a lot of noise around our change in direction, we believe the future we describe is inevitable. SMS has been commoditized, value has moved up the chain, and too many businesses are profiting from unethical business practices.

This market has been through many inflection points and this is us saying, it is about to happen again. So we invite Sinch and all the others to adapt to the new market dynamics and join us in doing what is best for the customers. Success in today's market requires setting people and teams up for virtual success with the right tools and strategies.

Join us on our mission at bird.com

Become a customer through customer@bird.com

Send your thoughts, good or bad, to angry@bird.com.

You can find me on X @robertdvis.

Pricing disclaimer: Pricing information contained in this article is accurate as of 05/02/2024. To see the most current pricing and offers, please visit bird.com/pricing.

Consider this: a local Swedish customer familiar with the market might already be paying less than $0.057 per SMS, while others are paying significantly more. With Bird, discounts are for everyone. All customers will find Bird CRM more cost-effective.

And then there are the artificial firewall markups. What many people don’t know is that Sinch and others are involved in the firewall business, supposedly safeguarding carriers from fraud. What they are really doing is controlling access with the ability to significantly increase pricing. This creates poor customer experiences and is why businesses should never leave their customers hanging with unreliable service. How this works is that when you give a carrier a firewall, you can restrict access to the network, forcing other carriers and competitors to go exclusively through the firewall provider. This gives them a small-scale monopoly.

As a result, the vendor can control network pricing and choose to influence it. In practice, that means that this translates to sudden, unexpected price increases. This is what happened to us recently when we got “Sinched”, and prices increased to $0.37 for Pakistan Jazz (see screenshot below).

Message saying prices increased to $0.37

This brings me back to my initial point. While there has been a lot of noise around our change in direction, we believe the future we describe is inevitable. SMS has been commoditized, value has moved up the chain, and too many businesses are profiting from unethical business practices.

This market has been through many inflection points and this is us saying, it is about to happen again. So we invite Sinch and all the others to adapt to the new market dynamics and join us in doing what is best for the customers. Success in today's market requires setting people and teams up for virtual success with the right tools and strategies.

Join us on our mission at bird.com

Become a customer through customer@bird.com

Send your thoughts, good or bad, to angry@bird.com.

You can find me on X @robertdvis.

Pricing disclaimer: Pricing information contained in this article is accurate as of 05/02/2024. To see the most current pricing and offers, please visit bird.com/pricing.

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The complete AI-native platform that scales with your business.

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© 2025 Bird

Contact Support

A person is standing at a desk while typing on a laptop.

The complete AI-native platform that scales with your business.

Contact sales

Start for free

© 2025 Bird

Contact Support