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Not breaking news: Smartphone subsidies are just a fact of modern life

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Hey, you all know how phone “subsidies” work, right? You pay a reduced up-front charge for the phone so they can rope you into a contract, blah, blah, blah. That’s not surprising in 2014, is it?</p><p>
It used to be surprising. Here’s the Macalope (http://www.macworld.com/article/1141121/macalope_fallout.html), five years ago when AT&amp;T customers were first figuring this out:</p>

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It] isn’t a “subsidy” by the traditional definition (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/subsidy). It’s a loan. AT&amp;T is loaning you the money to buy an iPhone and you’re signing a contract to pay it off over the next 18 months. If you decide you want out of your loan, you have to pay a buyout.</p><p class="jumpTag"><a href="/article/2689997/not-breaking-news-smartphone-subsidies-are-just-a-fact-of-modern-life.html#jump">To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here[/url]</p></section></article>

Source: Not breaking news: Smartphone subsidies are just a fact of modern life (http://www.macworld.com/article/2689997/not-breaking-news-smartphone-subsidies-are-just-a-fact-of-modern-life.html#tk.rss_all)