May 21, 2010
At AT&T, we work hard every day to provide you with a great wireless experience at competitive prices.
One of the ways we do this is to offer you the industry’s leading wireless handsets below their full retail price when you sign a two-year service agreement. In the event you wish to cancel service before your two-year agreement expires, you agree to pay a prorated early termination fee (ETF) as an alternative way to complete your agreement. Of course, if you prefer not to enter into a term commitment, we offer the same great selection of devices at their full retail price with no term commitment or ETF, as well as prepaid GoPhone options.
We are now making changes that will lower the ETF for many customers who agree to new term commitments, and will increase it for others. Current AT&T wireless customers who are within their two-year consumer service agreement or have an existing enterprise service agreement will see no change to their current terms.
Beginning June 1, 2010, we will reduce the ETF in new and upgrade two-year service agreements for all customers who are buying basic and quick messaging phones. Whether you are new to us or upgrading handsets, the ETF will decrease to $150 from $175, and be reduced by $4 for each month that you remain with us as a customer during the balance of your two-year service agreement. After the term commitment is completed, the ETF will no longer apply.
MacDailyNews Take: Is a lower ETF on devices that nobody wants really a lower ETF?
AT&T continues,
For customers who enter into new two-year service agreements in connection with the purchase of our more advanced, higher end devices, including netbooks and smartphones, the ETF will increase to $325, and be reduced by $10 for each month that you remain with us as a customer during the balance of your two-year service agreement. After that, the ETF will no longer apply.
Thank you for being an AT&T customer. We hope you enjoy your AT&T wireless device and service. We appreciate your business and we will continue to work hard to earn it.
MacDailyNews Take: Does this mean that there’s a Verizon iPhone coming soon or is this just business as usual?
Love the timing. This tells me iPhone is coming to Verizon. ATT wants to lock all the new iPhone customers I’m this summer so they won’t switch to V when iPhone goes to Verizon in the fall.
@this guy, “Still cheaper then Verizon’s’
Cheaper ‘than’ also.
It could be Verizon coming. Or it could be Apple renegotiating a much higher “exclusivity fee” to let ATT keep its advantage over everyone else for a bit longer. Therefore, it costs more to terminate a “smart phone” contract because it costs more for ATT (up front) to gain an iPhone customer.
screw Verizon. they have crappy customer service, their billing and online statements suck. So want the coverage may be a little better, I have NO coverage problems with AT&T;. And I can talk on the phone and be on the internet at the same time.
Hmmmm… I qualify for my full iPhone discount this November, instead of next June. So I don’t have to wait two years after all.
But they better get on with it regarding the bloody tethering.
Hey MDN! Please post those email adresses/telephone numbers of those a%*holes that were suppose to have given us tethering since yesterday.
This has to do with avoiding black market buyers from abusing ETFs.. Me thinks
No wonder that ATT executive didn’t fear mass defections to Verizon for the CDMA iPhone. They’ve been planning to increase the amount of pain iPhone customers encounter should they choose to leave the network.
It still won’t be enough, however.
Nothing will stop the millions of iPhone customers who can’t wait to break free of ATT’s shackles and finally get the good, dependable service that such a great phone deserves. No longer will their network be a caveat, a bitter pill that must be swallowed in order to have the phone they love.
@Moolatte re “Ha! Come to Canada.
iPhones are ALL 3-year contracts and $400 termination fees. Plus $200 TErmination fees for the Data plan… or something like that.”
Why wouldn’t you check it out first before posting?
This only makes sense to me, as much as people hate paying for something they’re supposed to. Fact is, at $199/299, AT&T;is subsidizing the purchase of the iPhone by more than $325. Try to buy one with no contract and you’ll see what I mean.
It also makes sense that cheaper phones that aren’t subsidized nearly as much should have a lower termination fee.
Villify AT&T;all you want, but this to me is nothing we have a right to complain about. You don’t like it, don’t renew when your current contract runs out or don’t get a new contract with them. Pay full retail and enjoy your freedom— which will cost you more than buying into a contract and cancelling early.
YAYY!!! Down with AT&T;finally. Bring on the Verizon, baby. >=)
Best sign of upcoming Verizon iPhone so far.
Tried to cancel my iPhone contract w/ AT&T;, but the calls kept dropping…
@madgunde
Actually, no it doesn’t make sense. The thing people never realize is that if they are supposedly subsidizing it, if you bought one at full price your plan should be cheaper then. Well walk into ATT with a phone you bought off, lets say eBay, and see the price of the plan… It’s the same rip-off price.
That is why all cell phone companies suck and the subsidization is crap either way you look at it; As well as the reason why you should always get your newest phone and sell your old one.
Puh-leeze let the Verizon rumors be true! I am ready to not only kick AT&T;to the curb, but to crush their skull with a concrete block, knife open their abdomen and defecate on their spleen.
And euthanize their little dog, too.
MDNMW: water – as in piss on AT&T;
Irrational much?
@Jeff…
google the term “MyWi” or “rock your iphone”
$9.99, it’s never been so easy to jailbreak, or unjailbreak an iphone, and you turn your iphone into a wifi hotspot.
Good luck with that. I seem to remember tethering will not work with the iPad. In large part – because I don’t believe the dock connector will support a LAN feed.
Well, I require my iPhone to be able to make phone calls. Simple request. I’ve had it since birth. Still barely usable as a phone. If apple doesn’t move to other carriers I’m done. Android, here I come.
Ape prides themselves in ease of use, yet 3-4 years later, still can’t use my phone as a phone. Sorry, doesn’t cut it.
Neighbor has a droid, crystal clear and works great.
Time to leave I’m afraid. Apple, it’s been a good ride, but I’m no longer convinced.
I never really learnt to use an Ape properly … Chimps tho’ are a cinch to use, I barely read the instruction book.
@Sonya,
You are a total idiot… The reason for ETFs is that they SUBSIDIZE the phone when bought under a contract… That means, brainiac, that they PAID Apple the full price of the phone and make that back over time…
If subsidies were banned, then the iPhone would cost $499, $599 or $699, just as it does for those who buy unsubsidized phones…
If anything should be banned, it should carrier locking… T-Mobile’s coverage is an utter joke compared to AT&T;’s and there are no other GSM carriers in the US, but I should still have the freedom if I buy the phone WITHOUT a subsidy… Conversely, if I get it under a contract subsidy, I should have to stick with the contract or pay back AT&T;the difference for helping me get the phone at a lower entry point…
That’s what they are doing…
You don’t have be be a genius to see this, but obvious that idiots like you can’t.
JustMe
Where I live T-Mobile has excellent reception. I dumped atnt 3 years ago because I couldn’t make calls to my wife where she works. I had to go out on the deck to get one bar. Buddy, it all depends upon where you live as to which company has better coverage.
When Verizon jacked their ETF. Was everyone speculating that some certain Android phone or Blackberry was AT&T;bound. No it’s just business. Coincidence it’s before the new iPhone. No. This to protect themselves for all devices across the board, just like Verizon for the folks trying to scam getting bulk phone orders. Remember all companies give you a 30 day grace period to make sure the service YOU require is met. YOU DON’T HAVE TO HAVE AN IPHONE!!! yes it’s great, but if at&t;doesn’t meet your needs be smart. Business users is another story.
It seems to me that AT&T;has a right to recover its investment in its cell phone subsidies if a customer fails to uphold their end of the 2-year agreement.
Perhaps it would be better if the early termination fee was tied directly to the subsidy AT&T;outlays for each specific phone. Similarly, the early termination fee should decrease at the rate of 1/24 of the the value of the subsidy per month over the life of a 2-year contract.
For example, if AT&T;pays Apple $500.00 per 16GB iPhone 3GS for which it charges $199.00 upfront, then the value of the subsidy for that phone would be $301.00. The early termination fee would then be $301.00, and it would decrease in the amount of $12.55 per month over the life of a 2-year contract.
Similarly, if AT&T;paid Nokia $695.00 for their latest iPhone Killer, and charged its customers $199.00 upfront, then the early termination fee for the Nokia iPhone Killer would be $496.00. Likewise, the ETF would decrease by $20.66 per month over the life of a 2-year contract.
What say ye?
By far, the biggest let-down in the whole iPhone experience is ATnT – poor 3G reception, poor Edge reception, slow/no data speed, and outright lies about tethering.
I wish Apple would just ditch those bozos already. We know ATnT sucks, let’s try something different.
As for the price ETF increase, I hope some sort of class action suit puts an end to that nonsense. They lie *and* raise fees?!
Tsk tsk, Steve-O. ATnT is sharting all over the iPhone platform.