AT&T Increases Activation Fee to $40
Jun 12, 2014, 10:56 AM by Eric M. Zeman
AT&T has bumped up the price of activating new equipment on two-year plans from $36 to $40. The change went into effect June 8. The fee doesn't apply to AT&T Next plans, though AT&T told Fierce Wireless that heavy adoption of its early upgrade program played a role in increasing the activation fee for those signing contracts. AT&T spokesperson Mark Siegel claimed "there are administrative and other costs associated with activating or upgrading a device" on two-year plans. Sprint charges a $36 activation fee, Verizon charges a $35 activation fee (waived if customers sign up for Edge within two month), and T-Mobile doesn't charge an activation fee at all for customers who select a Simple Choice plan.
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Comments
Nothing but a scam.
Or how about advertising a product for 50% off, then you get to the store and they tack on an extra $40 because the advertised discount is more than they can afford?
i hate when i used to get calls about this because you do have a choice
Honestly, when i upgraded the Upgrade Fee wasn't even noticeable.
By the way, wireless providers sell AIR. They have always gotten over on consumers. There's nothing new here.
The Real Purpose of the Upgrade/Activation Fee
Everyone knows that the activation fee, the upgrade are completely bogus, nonsense fees. Nobody likes them, not even the employees of at&t.
However, customers tend to be sticklers, they want to try to 'negotiate' to get the lowest possible price. at&t doesn't not negotiate the cost of rate plans, therefore the only way to make customers feel like they are getting a good deal, is to pretend to demand more than you really want by charging fees that you don't really intend to collect.
So the way we accomplish that is by charging completely bogus fees, like the upgrade fee, that we have no intention of collecting, so that when customers get angry, you can t...
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Let us discuss the reason behind this further.....
People, realize, your contracts were nothing more than full retail to begin with. At least this time around, if you own a device and want to add it, it only cost $15 (usually). As long as you aren't a data hog and can use WiFi to do your Netflix and porn, you'll be fine - and even then, you only watch 5 mins of porn so you'll be okay.
I can't say much for the cellul...
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But everything you wrote is true! I have AT&T and I am really impressed with not only their network but their customer service. I had Verizon for about 9 years before switching and although their network was good, it jus...
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Verizon will be next.
Non Story!
I completely understand why they charge for these though, when it comes to subsidizing the cost of the phone the carriers don't immediately make $ so they try and get as much as they can up front. The Next program has afforded them AND US the ability to get what we want. They want to make $ off us faster and we don't want contracts but get the choice to get a NEW phone every 12 or 18 months!
I am a HUGE fan of no contracts and new equipment every 12 months!!!
For the love of God, please read people
Whether or not you can understand, nor admit it, you've ALWAYS (ALWAYS) - GOT THAT? ALWAYS have paid full retail for the phone. What, did you expect them to take a $450 loss on a phone and somehow stay in business? No, they just jacked up the monthly bill to make up for it over 24 months.
Now, at least when you're done paying off your device, the *hidden* subsidy goes away. Before grandma would keep her phone for 3-4 years and you'd secretly be paying for a phone that was FAR paid off.
Also, say you want to add a line - It's $15 (for 10GB and above) and you have unlimited everything besides data. As long as you own de...
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Switch to cricket if theres a problem
T-Mobile Charges...
ha, i laugh
as long as you call CS, they will take care of it.
they rather have you stuck with them for 2 yrs then worry about these fees
What carrier will be next?
SIM card