On my latest bill, I discovered what Sprint calls a "Frequent Flyer Excise Charge" in the amount of $5.04.

The customer service representative says I will get billed for miles "earned" from the Sprint service.

I don't recall Sprint or US Air informing me that I would be paying for miles.

Miles are an incentive to do business with a company - If Sprint wants me to pay for miles, it ought to be up-front about that and let me know before I sign up for the service.

Is this routine with the phone companies? Is it just Sprint that uses hidden fees to charge for miles, or do other phone companies do it too?