Sprint is following T-Mobile's lead and offering customers who get an iPhone 6 now a free upgrade to the iPhone 6s when it's released, presumably in September. The deal, called iPhone Forever, lets subscribers lease a new iPhone and upgrade whenever an updated model is released.
Sprint follows T-Mobile's lead with new iPhone upgrade offer
iPhone Forever will set subscribers back US$22 a month for a 16GB model. The company describes the deal like this:
Anytime customers don't have the latest iPhone, they are eligible to upgrade. They bring their iPhone, upgrade on the spot and away they go. It's that simple. iPhone Forever is available on any eligible Sprint rate plan and upgrade eligibility is always included in your price.
Sprint's deal mimics T-Mobile's JUMP! On Demand offering where customers can get an iPhone now and upgrade to the new model when it is available. T-Mobile's deal costs $15 a month, so Sprint is matching that through the end of the year.
Both deals are great for subscribers who want to make sure they get the latest iPhone model without shelling out any extra money. They also show that T-Mobile is setting standards its competitors feel compelled to match even though it isn't the largest player in the mobile phone game.
Verizon and AT&T, both of which are substantially larger than T-Mobile, have been matching T-Mobile's offerings to avoid losing customers. For consumers, that means more options when choosing a cell service provider, and potentially better deals, too.
So far, that's been working out well for T-Mobile. The carrier is a distant third to Verizon and AT&T, but did manage to jump ahead of Sprint for total subscribers.
This isn't the first T-Mobile deal the other carriers have copied, or at least looked to for inspiration. After the company dropped traditional monthly contracts and subsidized phone prices, AT&T followed suit with its Next plan. Verizon recently joined in with its new plans, too.
With Sprint following suit and coming up with its own similar offerings, it's pretty clear T-Mobile has taken charge and is setting the rules for smartphone plans. Verizon and AT&T may be leaders as far as total subscribers go but they're followers in market trends, and so is Sprint.