14 DAY TRIAL // Nexus One by HTC has just gotten a little more appealing to mobile phone users out there. The handset, launched in early January in the US with Android 2.1 on board and available for purchase via Google's web store alone, now sports an early termination fee of only $150 if one cancels the contract during the first 120 days, down from the $350 “Equipment recovery fee” Google had in place when the device landed on the market.
According to a recent article on the Wall Street Journal, Google and T-Mobile have been both working for the lowering of the said equipment recovery fee. “Google's overall financial philosophy with regard to operator service plans remains unchanged: We make no profit from commissions from operators or from equipment recovery fees, and our recovery fees are based on operator charges to Google for early termination of service,” the company said in a statement, reports WSJ.
However, even if some might be more interested in purchasing the Nexus One now, knowing that they will have to pay less if they want to cancel, there is still one early termination fee that remains in place, namely the $200 ETF wireless carrier T-Mobile has in place. Most of you might know already that the Nexus One is available for purchase in the US either free of contract or on a two-year contract with T-Mobile, and the ETF regards this agreement.
For the time being, there are no exact details on why Google decided to lower the equipment recovery fee, though some suggest that FCC might have had something to do with this. It's a common fact that the Commission has been investigating wireless carriers in the US regarding their early termination fees, and this could be one of the main reasons for which Google lowered its own. However, the slow performance Nexus One shows on the market might have also contributed to the decision.