NEW YORK (AP) — Ever worry about buying a new phone, only to see a better one come out just two weeks later? Phone companies normally make you wait two years before upgrading to a new device. T-Mobile will now let you upgrade twice a year for just $10 a month.
T-Mobile US Inc. had already broken industry convention by ditching two-year service agreements and selling phones on installment plans. But T-Mobile’s installment plans typically ran two years as well, so customers had to wait that long for a cost-effective upgrade.
With the new Jump plan, T-Mobile customers will be able to have those remaining payments waived. The plan includes insurance to cover lost or stolen phones, as well as damage. Think of the new Jump plan as extending the insurance to cover phone envy when something better comes out.
“We’re going to attack what I believe is the single and most offensive wireless practice head on,” T-Mobile CEO John Legere said at Wednesday’s announcement. “Two years is too long to be locked into phones.”
In new television commercials, T-Mobile proclaims, “Upgrade when you want, not when you’re told.”
T-Mobile, the No. 4 U.S. cellphone carrier, has been trying to differentiate itself from bigger rivals by shattering longstanding industry practices. In March, T-Mobile dropped conventional two-year service contracts in favor of selling phones with installment plans. It has made the change a centerpiece of its marketing.
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