U.S. Cellular forced to be clear about “free”

This is such a common practice in the U.S. that I’m surprised that this hasn’t happened already. Every cell carrier — or nearly every one, at least — advertises “free” phones. Of course, there’s always a catch. Many times, you have to pay for the phone, and mail in a rebate. In addition, you have to sign a two-year contract, which is anything but free. The Oregon attorney general doesn’t seem to think this is all that fair, and has reached a settlement with U.S. Cellular that will force them to spell out their promotions.

“Consumers also complained to the Department of Justice that cellular phone ‘minutes’ were routinely accumulated as users accessed neighboring U.S. Cellular cell towers for service, but not reported until the following month,” according to the release.

To me, this is the bigger part of the case. We need a certain level of transparency in the wireless industry, and the reporting of available minutes certainly falls under that. This is especially important for prepaid users, who usually have their minutes measured pretty well.

It’s another victory for consumers, and hopefully one that spread throughout the wireless industry.

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