Leaked document shows T-Mobile style smartphone plan is coming to Verizon?

Just the other day, Verizon announced that in January it would eliminate early upgrades allowed 20 months into a 24 month contract. At the same time, the CEO of the parent company of Verizon Wireless, Lowell McAdam, said that it would be easy to take Verizon off two-year contracts and subsidized pricing. It was back in January when McAdam said that cutting subsidized pricing would be a great thing. Now, in what appears to be a training document for Verizon reps, a payment plan of 12 months in length is being referenced.

According to the document, among the choices that reps are to suggest to Verizon customers who want the latest and greatest smartphone is the Device Payment Plan. This apparently would allow a Big Red subscriber to pay the full retail cost of a new device over 12 months, although it is not known if there would be a down payment made first. T-Mobile recently launched its new plan where account holders make a down payment for a new device and then pay the balance off in monthly installments. For example, the 16GB Apple iPhone 5 would require a down payment of $99.99 and a $20 payment made over 24 months. Verizon customers currently pay a subsidized price of $199.99, but must sign a two-year contract with the carrier. While T-Mobile customers do not have a contract, they cannot get their phone unlocked until it is completely paid off.

There is no guarantee that the leaked training material is current, or that Verizon will go ahead with such a plan. And if the carrier does go ahead with this option, it doesn't necessarily mean the end of subsidized pricing at Verizon. T-Mobile has kept two-year contracts and subsidized pricing for nationwide retailers like Best Buy because of problems third party stores would have with keeping track of installment payments and commissions.

source: Droid-Life