We’ve confirmed that AT&T’s plans to stop offering two-year contracts through third-party retailers will also extend to Apple.
Droid-Life first reported that AT&T was planning to drop its two-year contracts through third-party retailers starting June 1, and we’ve confirmed with several sources that the move will also kick in at Apple retail.
AT&T will continue offering phones on two-year contracts in its retail stores and through its website, but it will instead be pushing its no-contract AT&T Next installment plans through Apple and other third-party retailers like Walmart.
Apple is already well prepared for the transition, as the company started offering iPhones on AT&T Next plans through its retail stores and online last summer. Apple is also preparing retail employees for the change, according to sources.
AT&T wouldn’t comment directly on the news, but it said “Customers love AT&T Next, and we are continuing to focus on it as the preferred way that customers want to shop. We have 2 year plans available for those customers who choose them.”
The original report from Droid-Life claimed some third-party retailers would still technically be able to sign-up customers on a two-year contract, but that option means you won’t walk out of the store with the device and it will instead ship out from AT&T days later (essentially the same as ordering from AT&T online). It’s unclear if Apple will have that option once the transition is complete. Otherwise, AT&T Next monthly installment plans will be the only option for those signing up or upgrading at Apple and other third-party retailers.
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Now they just need to end tiered data plans. Ha ha, I’m so funny.
Yeah, they should start selling Unicorns as well! I still have a VZW unlimited data plan, thank jeebus.
Yes!,and end per line access charges too!,my aunt is so mad at them,they charge $160 for two lines and she still has her iPhone 4s from 3 years ago
Well then she needs to actually look at the plans offered today. There is no way unless she owes for something else not mentioned in this post.
She probably has 2 unlimited everything lines, so pays way too much. Switch her to limited data, and it goes down by at least 30 bucks a month (360 a year), and thats only if she needs 10 gigs of data.
Amazing how this company stays in business given how badly the CEO is hell bent on screwing customers everyday he can. Thankfully, the competitive monopoly that gives him that ability is beginning to weaken- even the Federal Government is now suing AT&T for ripping off consumers by misrepresenting ‘unlimited’ data plans while ‘throttling’ speeds down by over 90% after 5gbts
I have worked for AT&T in the 90’s. Back then AT&T was hell bent on screwing the customers (and employees) everyday and everyway they can. Nothing has changed.
ATT in the 90s was a failed company purchased by SBC who took its name. Different company
And I work for vzw and have 7 lines with T hahahahaha
Am I just being grumpy or does this seem like a way to make it more difficult for unlimited data users to renew their plan?
If you want real unlimited, you should go to Sprint or TMobile. Seriously, ATT and VZ “grandfathered” plans are crappy compared to what you can get legitimately (and with no contract) on other providers.
I agree. I was on AT&T “unlimited” plan but were throttled so hard after 5GB, that it wasn’t usuable other than checking emails.
They were hit with a lawsuit and have stopped throttling unless the area is actually congested. Who knows. It’s more than just “unlimited data” though. I’m also grandfathered in to when you weren’t forced to have unlimited talk and text. Because I have the minimum of those things my bill is only $69. Obviously I never use up talk time because no one talks, and I never use up texts because everyone is on iMessage. I also never get close to 5gb of usage but I’m glad I pay less and never even worry about data.
We’ve confirmed that AT&T’s plans to stop offering two-year contracts through third-party retailers will also extend to Apple.
This is the 1st line of the article.
What they are saying is that they’re no longer branching off to 3rd party retailers. They still will offer 2 year agreements at AT&T with Grandfathered Data Plans. They just won’t allow Retailers to offer these Contracts. The writer from the article wrote it in a little confusing way.
It definitely makes it more difficult. The question is do you really use enough to justify paying extra for unlimited? Most people think they need it, but they don’t. I crack up when people say “I use all of it”. The. We look and they use less than a gigabyte (from ATT system)
I say it is great idea! Own your own phones as I do. If you cannot afford a $800 phone and you do not have the good credit with your own bank….then you cannot afford it. Stop trying to pretend you’re something your not. There are multitudes of $100 phones on the market today. Or even use your own credit cards. I have 7 lines on my AT&T account. 30 GB of rollover data is about 50 GB per month. And all for just over $200. But I own my own phones. The cell companies are not your mother or your bank people. Grow up.
Wow. Pretentious much? It’s a phone. Not a status symbol. Pretending something you’re not? 7 lines! 50GB? Wow! So cool!
Seriously dude, this is the internet. You don’t have to prove yourself. No one cares about your internet shoe size.
As someone who likes to buy keep his old iPhones and give it to a family member, then repeat over and over with new ones every year – not being able to do this in an Apple Store is awful.
Take ownership. Subsidize your own account
IPhone not a status symbol? Hahahaha in what world are you from.
Prove myself? What a moron. I am nearly giving an example of what happens when we take ownership of our own accounts and why is is better than begging like a dog for subsidies and act like they are a God given right. I guess cell phones should be a government entitlement.
I sense a bit of jealously in your post. My point was that ANYONE can have a bill like mine. Otherwise pay the piper and stop complaining about the costs. We all have control of our own accounts. So does this mean the gas station should subsidize our car payment as well?
Doing away with these 2 year contracts is hurting us!
All the time flagship Androids and even iPhones are on sale for $49/$99/$150 with the 2 year contract. Now with these edge and next plans you will be paying the whole $649/$699 Just over the course of 24….
No discounts anymore
These phones have always costs the same. The only difference is now you are responsible for your own and you will get a deal on services. Before that the cost of the phone was included in your monthly bills. You have always paid full price, just too many people don’t know math. No those that want the top of the line phones have to pay for them so that those of us that own our own phones do not have to subsidized yours via our monthly costs.
What you are saying is true IF you are spending $199 for the basic flagship. But with all these holiday sales and just discounts and promos you would get the phone for $99
For example for a 2 year contract, in August the LG G3 was $99 from best buy. Yet AT&T the same time had it for $199. The contract monthly payments were the same whether you decided to go to best buy or AT&T direct. So the best buy customer did indeed save $99
Actually, you’re the one who can’t do the math. The subsidy is usually a better deal.
The break-even for plans under 10 GB is a little over 27 months. If you change phones at 24-27 months, the 2 year contract is a better deal. If you keep your phone until month 28 or further, the Next plan is a better deal. If you have a >10 GB plan, breakeven is at 17 months instead.
And you will lose $25 a month for 2 years. Add that to the $99 and now you have paid $700 for the LG G2. The more your phone costs the more to have to bring into a 2 year contract. It actually many times cost you more. But none of that matters be caus even if you do save a measly $100 your are just jacking up the costs for those of us that want to pay a fair price for service and buy our own phones. We do not want to subsidize your overpriced toys. Pay for it yourself full price and then the guy that pays for his are then and only then treated fairly. IPhone 6 actually costs more with the stupid 2 year contract than it does to use the Next plan. If this were not so then why are so many of us using it or bringing our own to the table than ever before? Europe has been doing it all along and we are just starting to learn self reliance. And we call them the socialists? Think again.
Capitan liberty doesn’t want to pay for phone subsidies—I don’t want to pay for the home interest deduction you take on your home.
Do not worry about home deductions. We pay plenty enough property taxes throughout the loan to make up for that 30 times over.
You People CANNOT READ !!!! IT SAYS THEY are dropping 3RD Party RETAILERS……. NOT the Plan from AT&T Come on PEOPLE…. Along with that thay are promoting there NEXT Program……………………. READ THE RIGHT WAY…!!!!
P.S. They will still have the two year plan for those on Grandfathered Contracts
phew. safe. It sucks I won’t be able to get my next phone at an apple store but at least I’m not being forced to pay more money each month on top of having to pay full price for the phone.
• *their
• Punctuation
• Shouting
Write the right way.
The More You Know™ [glistening rainbow effect]
Apple is going to have to change how they announce the pricing on their new phones since they usually use 2yr contract pricing.
I see this as another way the loyal customer gets pushed a side. The big glaring problem I see with this is inventory at the AT&T stores and to a minor extent, the level of knowledge of the average AT&T customer rep. When I purchased the iPhone 6 months after launch the AT&T stores in Chicago had very little inventory still and I was giving wrong information regarding my unlimited plan and LTE data. In frustration I just went to to the Apple store, queued up and purchased the phone without issue.
The day AT&T does this is the day many many many customers leave. In a way I hope they do it. AT&T wireless only exists because of the good job done under the name Cingular. I find it comical how offended today’s AT&T finds it that users actually use their services. HOW DARE USERS USE THE SERVICE THAT THEY ARE PAYING FOR!!! Go ahead AT&T I have two phones on your plan. I’ve been looking for a reason to leave for quite some time… so have many others out there… go for it…
That is yet to be proven…we will just have to Wai and see. Of course you can always go with inferior service with VZW. Hahahahahahaha.
Disclaimer: I don’t work for ATT, but I do sell cell phones for one of these 3rd party companies.
What most people think is that they need unlimited data, and that they get an 800 phone for 200 bucks every 2 years. However, when you look at what you actually use in your monthly history, most people do NOT need to pay for unlimited (which cost on average 150 for 2 lines, which includes the other 600 for that phone that you only paid 200 for).
If you change to mobile share and get a next plan, for most people, the bill is still about 150 bucks for 2 lines and plenty of data. However, you saved the 200 up front (min) for each phone, not to mention the activation fees. So yes, these new plans are cheaper for the customer most of the time. If you actually use 10+ per line, then sure keep the unlimited. If not, get rid of what you aren’t using (and quit paying for ATT ceo yacht etc). However, please don’t pretend that ATT ever gave anyone 800 phones for 200 bucks. They have never been in charity. They definitely make all of that money back in your bills.
Awesome post. I too work in the industry and many people are hell bent on paying for unlimited data and then angry because they cannot get a upgrade like everyone else. And also miss out on all the deals being offered and most of the time they are using an average of 2Gb. I have even seen them turn down a savings of $50 per month and a new phone the whole while using .1 a tenth of a GB. Amazing! I use my data how I want when I want and have usually less than 3gb consumption. Also gave up our families unlimited data some 6 years ago. But I do work 50+ per week so I am not sitting around wasting time on Netflix. The cell is a business and educational device. Entertainment is better served at the park, on the television, at the gym, or interacting with others.
I travel for work, hence I eat up a lot of data, usually between 8 and 10gb per month. I like the fact that I don’t have to be continually be monitoring my data usage. I’m on a grandfathered plan w/AT&T and the $30/mo. I pay for unlimited data is a far cry better than limited or shared data. If you go over so much as 1mb, they stick you with $10 for another gig, even if you only use a fraction of it. Maybe it would be better if these service providers started charging data overages per mb instead of gb. I guess the Next plan has it’s rewards for families, but for single users, a 2 year contract is the only way to go…imho.
Besides…I never keep a phone for 2 years anyway. Get tired of it, and unload/trade it on CL.
As a customer I am not interested in paying $800 for $50 worth phones. If ATT drop its 20 years plan. I will drop them quickly.
Don’t jump too fast. ALL carriers are going to be getting rid of it. I work in the industry and it will not be long and the 2 year contract will finally be history. Praise the Lord.
Also, it is not ATT (or any carrier) that sets the phone prices. You may think they phone is only worth $50 dollars, but Apple, Samsung, LG, Motorola, and the likes have determined that is not the case, and they set the prices for the phones. In these new plans, they generally sell them to you for around 50 bucks off retail listed by the manufacturer.
Exactly. On a 2 year contract you pay $25 a month for 2 years that $600 you lose in your billing and if the “FREE” phone is only a $250 device???? Do the math. AT&T Next is the only way to go. And if I cannot afford that then I just go buy myself what I can afford and put it on my line. I am all good to go. Currently I I have an International Unlocked Microsoft Lumia 640 XL dual SIM card device that cost $200 bought off eBay brand new. What do I need AT&T for? Oh…..yeah…..i need their towers and that is all I am paying for. Towers. EBay and WalMart don’t sell towers. AT&T does. What a revelation.