Though late to the finish line, it looks like Sprint is finally ready to follow AT&T and Verizon Wireless’ lead and bump its contract termination fee to $350 for “advanced devices.” Sprint confirmed on Wednesday that it will soon increase its early termination fee (ETF) from $200 to $350 beginning in early September. The 75% increase will impact subscribers who purchase subsidized smartphones, tablets, netbooks and notebooks, and the ETF will continue to be prorated as it is currently. The change is set to go into effect on September 9th according to a company spokesperson, and the timing is anything but curious. Sprint is expected to finally begin selling Apple smartphones when the iPhone 5 launches in October, and this big ETF bump is likely an effort to prevent consumers from buying and flying. EBay would likely crumble under the weight of all the new auctions if people were able to purchase the iPhone 5 for as little as $399 with no contract to worry about.
[Via SprintFeed]
