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Comments on news posted 2013-01-28 07:53:09: AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson has hinted that the company could follow T-Mobile's lead and offer handsets under a finance plan. ..

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gigahurtz
Premium Member
join:2001-10-20
USA

gigahurtz

Premium Member

Will the bill actually be lower?

I'm all for this if the bill would actually be lower, but I don't believe one bit that carriers will drop the overall bill costs due to this switch (even though they should).
SpectrumDude
join:2002-04-14
Kernersville, NC

SpectrumDude

Member

It would make upgrading to the latest phone cost prohibitive for many. I was in the habit of upgrading my iPhone with each new generation. That may no longer be possible. In the end thought its still the consumer that gets the shaft and the corporations still take in profits.
mocycler
Premium Member
join:2001-01-22

1 recommendation

mocycler

Premium Member

said by SpectrumDude:

It would make upgrading to the latest phone cost prohibitive for many. I was in the habit of upgrading my iPhone with each new generation. That may no longer be possible.

Or to put it another way, you upgraded when you normally would not have just because you could...the cell provider ate a big chunk of the cost of the new phone. So why not?

Now that they are taking away your free ride and, you know, expecting you to pay full fare for your ticket, you're pissing and whining about "getting the shaft", as if not getting the latest and best the moment it hits the market makes one abused and mistreated by the Big Bad Cell Company.

It's funny how people are ok with sucking others dry but suddenly become soooo conservative about money when it involves their own wallet.

grydlok
join:2004-01-06
Richmond, VA

grydlok to gigahurtz

Member

to gigahurtz
nope because t-mobile plan are pretty much the same.
Plan prices under this model should be drastic but they are not.
flycuban
join:2005-04-25
Homestead, FL

flycuban

Member

What a bad idea

So if the iPhone is paid in full price of $800.00 at $20.00 a month, that would take 40 months to pay off... Looks like customers will NOT be upgrading their devices as often... Talk about shooting themselves in the foot.... Dang...
SpectrumDude
join:2002-04-14
Kernersville, NC

SpectrumDude

Member

and it will be the end of the unlimited plan too. Wondering getting a lower rate you will need to changed to one of the shared data plans or a bucket o minutes. AT&T figures out a way to screw the consumer in the end.

CodeeCB
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Minneapolis, MN

CodeeCB

Premium Member

T-Mobiles other ideas?

What about T-Mobiles other ideas that AT&T forgot to mention that actually benefit the consumer? Such as unlimited data. AT&T is a pretty irritating company.

Transmaster
Don't Blame Me I Voted For Bill and Opus
join:2001-06-20
Cheyenne, WY

Transmaster to SpectrumDude

Member

to SpectrumDude

Re: What a bad idea

Again the European model, But your device and then look for service, make it easier to switch carriers. If AT&T knew you could tell them to stick it and switch, and competitors knew they could pick off customers with sweeter deals just think of the impact that would have.
podstolom
join:2010-01-25
Wichita, KS

podstolom

Member

This plan....

won't fly unless there is incentive to the consumer to buy outright. Expecting the consumer to sacrifice a subsidy and keep plan rates high won't cut it. As for the European model, sure it's great, true competition for business but that can't work here now either since SIM-unlocking your phone is now illegal w/o carrier permission.

God how I hate how American corporations do business. Investor-driven, lobbyist-funded, apathetic or downright hostile to the desires of the consumer who pays the dividends and CEO mega-million $ salaries.
jagged
join:2003-07-01
Boynton Beach, FL

1 recommendation

jagged

Member

Hate to say it but...

... I told you all so. T-Mobile's current activations are 80% on Value Plans that offer the device subsidy.

And if AT&T is planning on doing it, guess what Verizon is thinking about? Yep, same thing. It's just a matter of time, to let the mathematicians figure out the pricing so ARPU and EBITDA don't drop take a it.

AT&T and Verizon both hate subsidizing the iPhone especially, it is costing them an arm and a leg. Sprint learned that the hard way, enough to let Softbank buy a 70% stake in them.
jagged

jagged to flycuban

Member

to flycuban

Re: What a bad idea

You do know the cost of your iPhone is factored into the voice and data plans you pay per month right?

you'll pay a lower price per month for your voice/data plan and tack on a monthly charge, after a downpayment, for your device of choice.

Right now if someone buys an iPhone from Ebay at a discount, they pay the same price per month as everyone else does but get no phone subsidy.
ke4pym
Premium Member
join:2004-07-24
Charlotte, NC

ke4pym to mocycler

Premium Member

to mocycler

Re: Will the bill actually be lower?

said by mocycler:

Or to put it another way, you upgraded when you normally would not have just because you could...the cell provider ate a big chunk of the cost of the new phone. So why not?

Now that they are taking away your free ride and, you know, expecting you to pay full fare for your ticket, you're pissing and whining about "getting the shaft", as if not getting the latest and best the moment it hits the market makes one abused and mistreated by the Big Bad Cell Company.

It's funny how people are ok with sucking others dry but suddenly become soooo conservative about money when it involves their own wallet.

I don't think it's exactly about a free ride. I'm sure the difference was being made up by everyone for the high voice/text prices for sure. Back in the day the phrase was "the cost of doing business".

There's only going to be one winner in this - for the short term. Those winners will be the share holders of the Bell companies.

The phone makers will hurt. Most people simply won't spend $800 on a telephone.

DaveDude
No Fear
join:1999-09-01
New Jersey

2 recommendations

DaveDude

Member

rather it this way

American needs to be more like captialist europe , same phone works on many carriers. LTE is the need cross carrier model. Change a sim, change your carrier.
Terabit
join:2008-12-19

Terabit to gigahurtz

Member

to gigahurtz

Re: Will the bill actually be lower?

of course not. AT&T do not offer any sort of discount if you BYOD, which shows it's just a money grap.

My plans cost half as much when I BYOD overseas and they would give me a credit if I locked into a 12 months contract.
Terabit

Terabit to mocycler

Member

to mocycler
Speak for yourself. I've never made a single dollar from shafting another person.

Probably why I also do not vote (R).
Terabit

1 recommendation

Terabit to SpectrumDude

Member

to SpectrumDude
How does having more choices shaft the consumer? Ironically, that's the fundamental (oil) of capitalism - choice.

It's why having one uber powerful walmart has screwed the US consumer in retail.

Choice is why Europeans (ironically) and many in the Asia_pac pay half as much as we do and receive better value.
sharksfan3
Premium Member
join:2004-02-16
North Hollywood, CA

1 edit

1 recommendation

sharksfan3

Premium Member

It's a great change

The free phone from years past is still the scourge of the industry today. People don't have a clue how much these devices really cost. If anything it will create competition among the smartphone makers to lower costs. If Google is able to keep their Nexus pricing down, they will be the real winners with this change until other the other guys catch up...

With the S3, you put like $100 down, then pay $20 a month for the next 20 months. After that you reap the savings of their lower priced value plans. More expensive phones have a higher down payment.

This will hurt those Apple fanbois who parade around with their sense of early upgrade for nothing entitlement.

edit: check out t-mobiles value plan pricing... it's much cheaper then the classic plan pricing...

gigahurtz
Premium Member
join:2001-10-20
USA

gigahurtz to mocycler

Premium Member

to mocycler

Re: Will the bill actually be lower?

said by mocycler:

said by SpectrumDude:

It would make upgrading to the latest phone cost prohibitive for many. I was in the habit of upgrading my iPhone with each new generation. That may no longer be possible.

Or to put it another way, you upgraded when you normally would not have just because you could...the cell provider ate a big chunk of the cost of the new phone. So why not?

Now that they are taking away your free ride and, you know, expecting you to pay full fare for your ticket, you're pissing and whining about "getting the shaft", as if not getting the latest and best the moment it hits the market makes one abused and mistreated by the Big Bad Cell Company.

It's funny how people are ok with sucking others dry but suddenly become soooo conservative about money when it involves their own wallet.

I'm confused by what seems to be a politically motivated statement

If the carrier allows you to upgrade every 12-18 months, anyone who doesn't take advantage of this is crazy. I upgrade whenever I have an upgrade available (I have 5 lines on my account). I upgrade each year and sell the previous phone and make money on everything when it's all said and done. I am already paying for it in my monthly bill, so what difference does it make?
gigahurtz

gigahurtz to Terabit

Premium Member

to Terabit
said by Terabit:

How does having more choices shaft the consumer? Ironically, that's the fundamental (oil) of capitalism - choice.

It's why having one uber powerful walmart has screwed the US consumer in retail.

Choice is why Europeans (ironically) and many in the Asia_pac pay half as much as we do and receive better value.

I am not a fan of Walmart, but the problem is that we the consumer continue to support a company like Walmart. They're a shit company with poor business practices, yet the consumer still goes and shops there because they want to save a few bucks.
Skippy25
join:2000-09-13
Hazelwood, MO

1 recommendation

Skippy25 to ke4pym

Member

to ke4pym
Mainly because there is not a phone made that should cost anywhere near $800 full retail. $300 would be a fair price and fair profit for any of these phone makers and resellers. This includes the iPhone the Galaxy and any other that has been produced in the last 5+ years.

It is the subsidies of the phone companies that have kept the retail price of these phones so high and we will all see that as this becomes common place the market settles in a year or 2.
saratoga66
join:2002-08-22
Saratoga, CA

saratoga66 to flycuban

Member

to flycuban

Re: What a bad idea

Your math is a little off. You are not getting that $800 phone free if you upgrade under the current plan. You still have to pay part of it at the time of upgrade.

A 32G I5 at AT&T is $750 retail. If you get it under the current plan you will have to pay $300 at the time of upgrade. That means you are financing $450 of the phone. If AT&T lowers the price plans by $20/mo and you pay the full retail for the phone you could upgrade every 22 months for about the same price.
desarollo
join:2011-10-01
Monroe, MI

desarollo to SpectrumDude

Member

to SpectrumDude

Re: Will the bill actually be lower?

said by SpectrumDude:

It would make upgrading to the latest phone cost prohibitive for many. I was in the habit of upgrading my iPhone with each new generation. That may no longer be possible. In the end thought its still the consumer that gets the shaft and the corporations still take in profits.

The costs of the handsets would then be set by a real market, not what the handset manufacturers and cellular phone companies collude & determine to be mutually beneficial to themselves, not the consumer.

Apple and Samsung sure seem to sell a lot of phones in countries without handset subsidies...I think we'll be fine here once it happens.
jagged
join:2003-07-01
Boynton Beach, FL

1 recommendation

jagged to sharksfan3

Member

to sharksfan3

Re: It's a great change

tell me about it

I know people working retail and we chat almost every day. And it's the same thing, people buying the iPhone 4s then coming to the store when the iPhone 5 come out and ask for it and act all surprised when they learn that the phone's cost is not $199
jagged

1 recommendation

jagged to DaveDude

Member

to DaveDude

Re: rather it this way

yeah, will have to pry that control out of AT&T and Verizon's cold dead hands first

cdru
Go Colts
MVM
join:2003-05-14
Fort Wayne, IN

cdru to Terabit

MVM

to Terabit

Re: Will the bill actually be lower?

said by Terabit:

My plans cost half as much when I BYOD overseas

I've often have heard such claims, and I'm curious as to the exact details. Can you please specifically state what carrier/plan you have here in the US (along with the number of minutes/text/data you get each month, as well as the corresponding plan in whatever country you went to where the plan was 1/2 the price when you BYOD.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT
·Frontier FiberOp..
Asus RT-AC68

1 recommendation

BiggA to Skippy25

Premium Member

to Skippy25
Agreed. If AT&T goes ahead with this, Apple will either be substantially re-thinking the way they price their devices, or their marketshare in the US will start free-falling. In the Android world, if the bigger, more established players don't want to start lowing prices, ZTE, Hauwei, and others will do it for them.

Dummy
@comcast.net

Dummy

Anon

No more contracts?

Question..currently if your contract is up and you decide to purchase a phone full retail they will not put you on a new 2-yr contract. Will this eliminate contracts all together?
kerya666
join:2002-12-20
Valrico, FL

kerya666 to mocycler

Member

to mocycler

Re: Will the bill actually be lower?

said by mocycler:

said by SpectrumDude:

It would make upgrading to the latest phone cost prohibitive for many. I was in the habit of upgrading my iPhone with each new generation. That may no longer be possible.

Or to put it another way, you upgraded when you normally would not have just because you could...the cell provider ate a big chunk of the cost of the new phone. So why not?

Now that they are taking away your free ride and, you know, expecting you to pay full fare for your ticket, you're pissing and whining about "getting the shaft", as if not getting the latest and best the moment it hits the market makes one abused and mistreated by the Big Bad Cell Company.

It's funny how people are ok with sucking others dry but suddenly become soooo conservative about money when it involves their own wallet.

Actually it was the other way around. ATT's monthly bill already included the cost for assumed phone that you got "subsidized" form them. Whether you upgraded phones every 2-year contract or not they still charged you for it as you did.
i.e. if you brought your own phone you will get 0 discount unlike some European carriers.

So the only person getting shafted is the customer who did not use something they already paid for in the original obscene bill.

Besides they get these phones in bulk for fractions of what retail price is so they get positives form the whole deal either way.

SHoTTa35
@optonline.net

SHoTTa35 to Dummy

Anon

to Dummy

Re: No more contracts?

You can always sign up with AT&T without a contract, this was the case as always. THere wasn't a benefit however because you paid the same price as if you had a contract.

With T-Mobile - you pay less per month than people that have a contract if you buy your phone full price.

For me, i save so much money per year ($700-900) that I can afford to buy a new phone every year without even thinking about it. My plan on AT&T used to cost my $110/month (+ taxes/fees), now I pay $50 (taxes included) for MORE than I had before (get international calls now included ).
negritude
join:2006-04-06
Oakland, CA

negritude to BiggA

Member

to BiggA

Re: Will the bill actually be lower?

said by BiggA:

If AT&T goes ahead with this, Apple will either be substantially re-thinking the way they price their devices...

»www.macrumors.com/2013/0 ··· -curves/
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