CES: T-Mobile heats up battle with AT&T, offering consumers $350 to switch from rival service
T-Mobile announced a new promotion at CES 2014, offering consumers $350 to break their contracts with rival services and more if they trade-in their old handsets.
The move comes on the back of a similar proposal from AT&T, which offered potential customers at least $200 in credit to switch from T-Mobile.
"We're giving families a 'Get Out of Jail Free Card'," said T-Mobile CEO John Legere, explaining that the cash bonus will cover early contract termination fees.
"Carriers have counted on staggered contract end dates and hefty early termination fees to keep people bound to them forever. But now families can switch to T-Mobile without paying a single red cent to leave them behind."
Legere, who called AT&T's promo "desperate" when it was first announced, went on to add that AT&T's offer would end up being beneficial to T-Mobile as it will allow customers to try a different service without facing the same financial risk.
"If it doesn't work they'll pay you to come back," he said, before revealing T-Mobile’s most recent customer growth figures.
The network pulled in 1.645 million net customers in the fourth quarter of 2013, up from 1.023 million in the quarter before.