I can't speak to the anti-trust issue but it is a real thing. My daughter couldn't join the group chat used by her (all iPhone) cheerleading team. We ended up missing last minute changes to practice locations more than once.
And, of course, there was some teasing from the other team members about how my daughter's parents were too cheap to buy them a proper phone.
"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their SMS but by the content of their character."
And, of course, there was some teasing from the other team members about how my daughter's parents were too cheap to buy them a proper phone.