In the ongoing rivalry between AT&T and T-Mobile, both carriers will now pay you to switch over from a rival service.
Today, T-Mobile announced it will pay the early termination fee (ETF) carriers charge you if you try to back out of your contract early if you switch. You also have to trade in your old smartphone to T-Mobile to take advantage of the offer. The amount it pays depends on the value of your phone, but T-Mobile says it could be as much as $650 per line.
A few days ago, AT&T announced it would offer up to $450 in credit if you switched from another carrier.
But there is some mixed messaging here. When T-Mobile's CEO John Legere caught wind of AT&T's offer, he told CNET that AT&T was trying to bribe customers away. Now, T-Mobile is effectively doing the same thing, paying people to switch networks.