ironically, they have laws that demand free SMS on most plans. i think only a few categories of pre-paid plans do not. Though that is changing. Couple years ago there were laws that set maximum prices on internet and sms for pre-paid plans (R$0.5 a day!), but the telcos already lobbied the downfall of those for this year.<p>brazil has a huge mentality of &quot;belonging&quot;. Supermaket chains that market to upper-middle class (think whole foods) charge 4-10x more for the same product (R$20 instead of R$2.50 for bottled water, same brand). and they are usually just a block from a regular market. yet, you see lines just because people want to belong by purchasing there.<p>WhatsApp was huge for people that needed to talk to folks overseas in brazil, and close to half the upper class and a large portion of the middle class in brazil sends their kids to study abroad. So flaunting WhatsApp instead of SMS is also a way to show off.