Sprint is the last of the big four mobile phone companies to eliminate the sock-it-to-the-consumer fee for ending a wireless contract early. But such fees may be ending anyway if a class-action lawsuit suceeds.
The company is the target of a new lawsuit filed by attorney Scott Bursor, the same lawyer who convinced a judge in July that Sprint’s early termination fees are illegal in California. That case is still pending. A decision is expected in 90 days.
Bursor took the case national, accusing Sprint of wrongly charging subscribers $1.2 billion in early termination fees, according to a story today by Dow Jones news services.
According to spokeswoman Kathleen Dunleavy, Sprint’s official response to the latest lawsuit is this:
The important thing to keep in mind is that the ruling on which the Plaintiffs attorney bases his latest lawsuit is a preliminary ruling only. We view this latest lawsuit as cynical and opportunistic, particularly since it is based on a premise that is opposite of the conclusion reached by the jury in the earlier California suit.
Getting back to Sprint’s ETF change of heart, its new early termination policy starts six months into a contract. At 6 months, the company will start deducting $10/month from the $200 fee. The $10 deduction continues until the fee reaches $50, at month 19. After that, there will be a $50 fee to end a contract early.
This new pro-rated service began Nov. 2, 2008, so if you bought a phone from the company on Nov. 1, looks like you’re stuck with a non-prorated 2-year contract.
Other mobile phone companies have been doing this for nearly two years. Verizon started in November 2006, while AT&T followed a year later. T-Mobile began prorating its contracts in June.
By comparison, Verizon and AT&T take $5 off per month on its $175 fee. T-Mobile’s $200 fee drops to $100 when there is 3 to 6 months left in the contract and then falls to $50 in the remaining 3 months.
Related stories on the mobile phone industry:
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- Free Wi-Fi for iPhone users is back, really!
- Wal-Mart selling Google phone at a discount
- Boost Mobile adds $1/day texting with caveats
- BlackBerry Bold anyone? AT&T sets sale date
- Google phone customers in line in O.C.
- Review: 7 days with the Google phone
- Review: Fun with the Google Android Market
- Google Phone: GPS and maps finally work
- Google phone? Yep, we got one
Tamara 'the Gadgetress' Chuang
Here's a list of TV/mobile companies helping consumers one tweet at a time. 
Good deals!
I like the one where (Verizon) you get a 30 day trial because I use mine in a canyon and the previous carrier was hard to get and I had to buy an external antenna.