att_next_iphoneEarlier this week we reported that apparently AT&T was planning to do away with its 2-year contracts that it typically offers to iPhone customers shopping for the device via Apple’s stores. Well it turns out the reports were true as it seems that is what the carrier has done., which is to remove the subsidy program.

Instead, if you were to surf on over to the Apple online store, you will find that you will no longer be able to select the subsidized iPhone. Instead customers are greeted with the only choice of selecting AT&T’s Next program which is more like an installment plan that starts at $21.64 a month, with the price going up depending on the iPhone model you choose.

That being said there are still subsidies being offered from the likes of Sprint and Verizon, so if you’re not particularly loyal to AT&T, you still have some options as far as subsidized phones are concerned. This shift from subsidized phones isn’t an iPhone-only thing. Previously we have seen carriers such as T-Mobile do away with subsidies as well, a move that was controversial at that time.

However recently AT&T’s CEO stated that he believes subsidized handsets are on their way out, so if you’d like to get an iPhone and don’t mind signing a 2-year contract with a carrier, it looks like AT&T will not be one of them.

Filed in Apple >Cellphones. Read more about and .

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