[url]http://techblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/05/att-raising-early-termination.html[/url]
AT&T's Open letter about it:
[url]http://www.att.com/gen/press-room?pid=17951[/url]
[QUOTE] The Wall Street Journal is reporting (and I've left a message with AT&T seeking confirmation and comment) that Dallas-based AT&T is dramatically hiking its early termination fee on smart phones to $325, from the current $175.
The change goes into effect June 1, and covers both new subscribers and renewals.
In other words, if you want to get that new iPhone that Apple is getting set to launch in the next month or so, you'll have to agree to a much steeper ETF in order to get it.
The WSJ points out that the higher ETF would make it much less likely that AT&T iPhone users will defect to Verizon if and when that carrier gets the iPhone.
AT&T is also lowering the ETF on feature phones and messaging phones by $25 to $125.
UPDATE: I just spoke with AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel, and he confirmed the numbers in the Journal report.
"The idea is, and we think that it's fair approach, that if you spend less on a device, your early termination fee should be less," he said. "If you spend more, your early termination fee should be more."
He said the decision to implement the higher fee was unrelated to the iPhone or any other single phone.
"This move, what we did today, is unrelated to any device announcement or future plans," Siegel said.
He also pointed out that AT&T's smart phone ETF is, at $325, still less expensive than Verizon's smart phone ETF, at $350.
The Federal Communications Commission recently investigated the ETF's required by the major U.S. carriers, and noted that "these fees are substantial (and in some cases are increasing) and have an important impact on consumers' ability to switch carriers."
I've left a message with the FCC to see if the agency has any comment on the new AT&T fee.
In the meantime, what do you think? Not a big deal? Will you switch from AT&T in protest?
UPDATE: Also, just to clarify, the new ETF does not apply to existing contracts. You'll only be subject to the higher fee if you renew or sign a new contract on or after June 1.
UPDATE: AT&T has issued an "An Open Letter to our Valued Customers" that doesn't really explain the fee increase.
[/QUOTE]
this will never concern me
All the more reason to be sure of your contract v:v:v
Fuck AT&T. Anyone who signs up with them just for an iPhone deserves getting shafted like they do.
I garuntee this is to try and stop customers from trying to switch to Verizon. This crap should be illegal.
[QUOTE=Zeddy;22108454]I garuntee this is to try and stop customers from trying to switch to Verizon. This crap should be illegal.[/QUOTE]
Just don't buy phones with their services.
That is fucking horrible.
They'll charge you for anything these days.
That is why i refuse to get a cell phone. Yes, i don't have one, i don't feel the need to pay 70 dollars a month for a fucking phone.
I got AT&T. It's really cheap because my dad works for at&t. we get coverage just about anywhere, except when we really need it.
The point is that you entered into a contract with them, and as terms of the contract, you get a phone with a vastly subsidized cost. The point of both the contract and the early termination clause is for the carrier to be able to recoup the losses they have suffered on the subsidy.
[QUOTE=Kagrenak;22108952]The point is that you entered into a contract with them, and as terms of the contract, you get a phone with a vastly subsidized cost. The point of both the contract and the early termination clause is for the carrier to be able to recoup the losses they have suffered on the subsidy.[/QUOTE]
Shut up you work for AT&T
[QUOTE=Kagrenak;22108952]The point is that you entered into a contract with them, and as terms of the contract, you get a phone with a vastly subsidized cost. The point of both the contract and the early termination clause is for the carrier to be able to recoup the losses they have suffered on the subsidy.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, basically, the cost of the phone on a contract plus the early termination fee should equal the price of the phone without a contract.
Just buy a phone separately and don't sign on a 2-year contract silly.
fuck shit. i have at&t as my internet
This is why I have MetroPCS, As crappy as there service is signal wise, there fees and shit are pretty low.
[QUOTE=MR-X;22108746]That is fucking horrible.
They'll charge you for anything these days.
That is why i refuse to get a cell phone. Yes, i don't have one, i don't feel the need to pay 70 dollars a month for a fucking phone.[/QUOTE]
Heard of a pay as you go cheap-ass phone with no contract?
[QUOTE=lemongrapes;22109776]Heard of a pay as you go cheap-ass phone with no contract?[/QUOTE]
Yeah, no shit. They're gimmicky as fuck too, charge you to use the damn phone with daily fee's. If i had a cell phone i would be using it on a daily bases
30 = 30 Dollars a month to use the phone, that is without adding the cost of the pre-paid cards which would make it almost 50 dollars a month to have. Sure there are a few brands without that B.S but coverage sucks.
No thanks, My life doesn't depend on a phone so it doesn't hurt me. I usually hear "huurr but you can't text." Well i don't need to, seeing as i can work anywhere between 8-10 hours a day i don't have time to stand around and be useless and text.
[QUOTE=johanz;22108688]Just don't buy phones with their services.[/QUOTE]
That's pretty easy for us in the EU, in the US you usually buy a phone with a contract (and they are stuck in their contract)
[editline]10:15PM[/editline]
[QUOTE=MR-X;22108746]That is fucking horrible.
They'll charge you for anything these days.
That is why i refuse to get a cell phone. Yes, i don't have one, i don't feel the need to pay 70 dollars a month for a fucking phone.[/QUOTE]
You don't have a phone? That's actually kind of surprising.
I have an N900, I payed 429 euros for it once and I pay 15 euros a month. Pretty darn cheap.
[QUOTE=MR-X;22109973]Yeah, no shit. They're gimmicky as fuck too, charge you to use the damn phone with daily fee's. If i had a cell phone i would be using it on a daily bases
30 = 30 Dollars a month to use the phone, that is without adding the cost of the pre-paid cards which would make it almost 50 dollars a month to have. Sure there are a few brands without that B.S but coverage sucks.
No thanks, My life doesn't depend on a phone so it doesn't hurt me. I usually hear "huurr but you can't text." Well i don't need to, seeing as i can work anywhere between 8-10 hours a day i don't have time to stand around and be useless and text.[/QUOTE]
tl;dr hurrdurrr I didn't even look prices since they are bloody expensive I work a whopping 8 hours a day I'm too busy to text but not busy enough to post on a forum
[editline]10:20PM[/editline]
[QUOTE=wewt!;22110580]
You don't have a phone? That's actually kind of surprising.
I have an N900, I payed 429 euros for it once and I pay 15 euros a month. Pretty darn cheap.[/QUOTE]
Depends on what the 15€ includes, I pay 9€ per month and I get double SIM-cards with free unlimited 3G data, and a 3g modem for my PC.
[QUOTE=Zeddy;22108454]I garuntee this is to try and stop customers from trying to switch to Verizon. This crap should be illegal.[/QUOTE]
They can't change the contracts of existing customers. And if they can it's the customer's fault for being stupid enough to sign it.
[QUOTE=MR-X;22109973]If i had a cell phone i would be using it on a daily bases
No thanks, My life doesn't depend on a phone [/QUOTE]
does not compute
It's because AT&T sucks. Their signals drop all of the time here and there are tons of dead zones. Verizon doesn't have any dead zones here that I know of.
You could just jailbreak it, I hear that's all the rage these days.
[I]Not sure if it's warez or not, I don't even own any of their phones.[/I]
although you did sign a contact its still bullshit to make THAT high i mean cmon isnt that a bit much.
FuCK
[QUOTE=MR-X;22108746]That is fucking horrible.
They'll charge you for anything these days.
That is why i refuse to get a cell phone. Yes, i don't have one, i don't feel the need to pay 70 dollars a month for a fucking phone.[/QUOTE]
That's just stupid, don't get a contract phone get a pay as you go phone instead. I paid £40 for my phone and then just put a tenner on as and when I need it.
[QUOTE=MR-X;22109973]Yeah, no shit. They're gimmicky as fuck too, charge you to use the damn phone with daily fee's. If i had a cell phone i would be using it on a daily bases
30 = 30 Dollars a month to use the phone, that is without adding the cost of the pre-paid cards which would make it almost 50 dollars a month to have. Sure there are a few brands without that B.S but coverage sucks.
No thanks, My life doesn't depend on a phone so it doesn't hurt me. I usually hear "huurr but you can't text." Well i don't need to, seeing as i can work anywhere between 8-10 hours a day i don't have time to stand around and be useless and text.[/QUOTE]
Because texting is so time consuming.
I never got Termination Fees. Isn't that like making someone pay to leave your building, which is illegal?
I like my Samsung Moment through Sprint.
Here's what I thought though. Verizon supports Android, which is the "iPhone killer", which it's becoming, seeing how it's on the up-trend. Now, if Verizon gets the iPhone, that would mean Android and iPhone would be having an actual phone war within one company. So how would that work out? Less bashful ads?
I love this ad:
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnaAQwGcBks[/media]
[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;22119450]I never got Termination Fees. Isn't that like making someone pay to leave your building, which is illegal?[/QUOTE]
Yeah, it's like that.
Except when you entered the building, you signed a paper saying that you would promise to be in the building for 3 hours, but you got bored and left after an hour.
It's bullshit, and I can't believe they would go this low, but you still signed a contract and that implies that you've read the entire contract and understand it. [sp]Even if you didn't actually read though it. [/sp]
[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;22119450]I never got Termination Fees. Isn't that like making someone pay to leave your building, which is illegal?[/QUOTE]
It's like you can either get a car for 10,000 dollars, or a car for free if you promise to buy gas for it for the next 2 years at the guy who gives you the car.
Now, if you want to get the gas from elsewhere, you pay the termination fee.
simple as that
[QUOTE=evilking1;22120682]It's like you can either get a car for 10,000 dollars, or a car for free if you promise to buy gas for it for the next 2 years at the guy who gives you the car.
Now, if you want to get the gas from elsewhere, you pay the termination fee.
simple as that[/QUOTE]
Except they restrict the plans available to those phones to insane $60-70 per month data plans
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