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> help him secretly unlock AT&T phones, freeing the customers from any installment agreement payments and from AT&T’s service. How are phone service contracts
by smnrchrds 5y ago
> help him secretly unlock AT&T phones, freeing the customers from any installment agreement payments and from AT&T’s service.
How are phone service contracts written in the US? In Canada, if you want to cancel your service, you have to pay the remainder of the price of the phone that you got on contract. Phones have to be sold unlocked by law, but even before this regulation was passed, it was not like you could get a locked cellphone on a 2 year contract and then cancel the plan after one month and keep the phone for free.
- Mountain_Skies 5y agoKeeping the phone locked gives the carrier leverage over the customer. There will be some percentage who get their subsidized phone and quickly quit paying their monthly bill. Then they can move to another carrier if the phone is unlocked. The original carrier of course is still owed money under the contract but will find it expensive to collect. Locking the device is a tool to prevent this. What's dirty though is carriers not automatically unlocking the phone as soon as the contract ends. It's a way of making switching to another carrier difficult even if you've fulfilled your contract in full.
- thatguy0900 5y agoYou have to pay remainder to cancel here, as well. But if you just stop paying your bill and keep the phone att isn't going to bother to come after you unless it was multiple thousands you owe them on multiple phones.