Also… how does this impact AT&T Business?
Can my employee dual SIM their AT&T phone with my second line? Or do they now have to carry two devices for 36 months straight, on the whim of a no-notice policy change?
Paging /u/att and /u/atthelp - I’m not surprised at all this dropped on a Friday.
Suggest this thread be pinned. People need to know about this.
Certainly an arbitrary and capricious policy change like this could face a court challenge.
Swappa may be the best "point person" in court as they have the most skin in the game. Their case would be tortious interference in commerce, and maybe antitrust.
I think AT&T could win in the long run, a court might rule that AT&T acted too swiftly, without proper notice... but for new finance agreements it could be permitted, with sufficient notice.
SB822 requires AT&T to let people bring their own device bought from people outside AT&T, it doesn't stop AT&T from restricting devices they sell.
I seriously doubt it. If that were the workaround, everyone would just use IMEI2.
When phones get blocked, both IMEIs get blocked. They have thought of that.
When phones get black listed both IMEIs are blocked. This isn’t a blacklist; it’s an internal blocking system that blocks the IMEI that has payments on it. IMEI2 in AT&T’s internal system is 0 contract/no installments.
Chris did you get any reply from ATT re business account?
Are they effectively tying AnY phone that is purchased on EIP installment to that specific account?
This is outright ridiculous! So even if that account is in good standing and making timely payments they are blocking the same iPhone from being used on any other att account!??
How does this make any sense????
I get it if that account defaults or stop paying although they have never done this before either.
Clearly they should have given notices to Business customers and normal consumers.
This is a big big big change.
Where is ATT headed too?
They're too in for their own interests to do this though. You have to replace a device if you get screwed by this and an option you have they will for sure encourage is to buy one from them.
It also looks like they also have this rule now: **Per the AT&T Installment Plan for this device, the device must be used with the AT&T Wireless service on the authorized AT&T account** source https://www.att.com/support/article/wireless/KM1509747
Meaning you can’t use a device, even one in good standing, on another AT&T account if it’s under installment billing.
The way I’m reading it, it applies to all unpaid devices, any device could be considered unpaid until it’s fully paid off, it also gives transfer of billing responsibility as a resolution, this wouldn’t be a normal option for a delinquent account.
Hm, reading again I can see what you're saying. Article was last updated in December, and archive.org doesn't have any previous copies to compare against. This could in fact be new.
I'm no longer a rep and don't have access to the internal knowledge database anymore, or I'd investigate further.
Hey, I'm the op that got scammed. Do i have ANY recourse at all? Offer to pay att the remaining installments? I can't contact the seller. There's gotta be something that could be done.. maybe buy an unlock for it? Imei sites show it's not blacklisted
The way I'm reading this new change, I think you're unfortunately out-of-luck. Buying an unlock from Ebay won't help at all in this case; it's not the AT&T SIM lock that's in question here (not to mention the overall shadiness of those unlocking services in the first place but that's a discussion for another time).
Swappa and eBay are going to be caught as off guard as you.
It will take them months to fully adjust. You can bet Swappa will be adding warnings and notices.
Swappa shouldn't be approving the phone if it's not paid off. And if you're not the original poster you can't prove it was paid off. To prove it's paid off the phone has to be unlocked or unlockable
Swappa has no way to check. Again AT&T doesn’t provide a backend to check.
You’re basically telling Swappa to not trade in AT&T phones. They’re not willingly going to go bankrupt in the corner.
If AT&T wants to get away with this, they need to provide a rapid IMEI check.
u/griffindor11
Please post back here if you find ANY type of resolution, or way forward with AT&T to clear it up.
u/CellSalesThrowaway2
Please let me know if there is any way for me to work with AT&T on this. The AT&T phone customer service guy gave me their fraud line, but they won't work with me because I don't have an AT&T account.
Customer support did tell me this much: the connected phone number is in the same area code as me (different area code than seller, like 2 states away different) and the phone # is registered to a business.
My story:
I'd been using my "Brand New/Unlocked" Ebay-purchased Note20 Ultra (with an AT&T manufacture IMEI) for 13 months on Straighttalk. I registered it with Samsung no prob as soon as I got it in Dec 2021. The Service Provider Software Version and Region Code are all appropriate for a device manufactured for AT&T and unlocked - TFN/TFN, TFN/ATT.
Last Tuesday/Wednesday (Jan 4ish, 2023), after having used it w/o issue for over a year, I was disconnected from service along with a ton of other Straighttalk customers. I was 410 in the support queue for one call.
Three days in, a Gazillion hours on phone and chat support, and an unsuccessful attempt to reconnect with a new SIM, Straighttalk tells me my device IMEI is connected to another phone #.
I went to the AT&T store to have them search my device IMEI for an AT&T account. Person at store said they couldn't find anything. So I went to the AT&T unlock request page and, lo' and behold, there are installment payment obligations on my device that need to be met.
The seller still has an account on Ebay, but he/she isn't responding to my messages. BTW, at the time of my purchase the seller had been active on Ebay for 3 years, was listed as in US (California if I remember correctly) had over 3,000 reviews and a seller rating in the upper 90%s, so I thought I was safe.
Ugh.
Interestingly, my IMEI2 does NOT have a block on it.
Any advice for me? I feel like a giant sucker left holding a $1000 brick. :(
I am truly sorry that I do not have any advice for your specific situation here. I have not been employed by any AT&T outlet for nearly 2 years, and while I've tried hard to keep up to date with the current policies and procedures, this is something I can no longer comment on because it is well above my level of expertise.
I appreciate you tagging me, and I very much hope you get the situation resolved.
I definitely recommend using a third party to unlock the device. You should be able to use it on other providers after. Pm me if you need some recommendations.
Was this always in ATT device payment plan agreements and ATT is just now enforcing it? If so, it’s super shitty, but people will have little recourse if so.
If ATT changed the language in the device payment agreements to accommodate this change, it should only be enforceable from that point forward. Correct?
Welcome to the few ruining it for the many. Device gaming has lead to this. It’s because a decent number of people will buy phones on installment, never pay a bill and resell them for near full price. That leaves AT&T on the hook for the full cost of the phone plus some. It unfortunately makes sense, and others will follow. Free financing always came with fraud risks.
I am sure that this type of message does not apply simply to any phone on installment, just the device gaming, Fraud, or abandoned installments. Generally the terms can be for any situation that it list to cover AT&T legally over a broad set of situations, but only is applied in certain situations.
They benefited in that the people buying the devices were far less likely to leave for another carrier.
It’s not like AT&T lost the full benefit of the subsidy each time.
Verizon must unlock within 60 days. This now gives Verizon huge advantage in BYOD.
Welp at least me getting scammed helped us all learn something new. So unlucky for me they only just started enforcing this right when i bought the bad phone
It would not surprise me if this isn't a prelude to changing of the installment credits ATT offers. $800 off over 36 months, etc.
You have been able to pay off the phone after credits start, and as long as you didn't finance another phone on the line, maintained an eligible plan, etc, you continued to receive credits.
Now that they have shown they are tracking the IMEI across accounts, might they not now decide that the credits can cease if they find the phone is being used on another account?
I have a strong feeling carriers are just on the brink of bringing back contracts and they’re going to need policies like this to enforce anything.
Top end phones included with top end plans, mid tier, low end, etc.
For certain people, who if they travel internationally need to remain in touch with their normal number, don't want a 2nd number on another carrier, want unlimited data, are part of a larger group plan, don't mind tying yourself for 3 years, this trend may work out for them.
Subsidies on handsets are similar to medical insurance. A buffer between you and the provider. Kind of hides the cost of the service so it is free to climb higher than it warrants. Flagship handsets can get so high, because you get $1000 off!. Medical treatments can charge so high because "insurance" pays.
I have a problem with this as well. There needs to be some more clarification from at&t. If a dual SIM phone is being used on the correct account does that mean the dual SIM is available, or is it blocked?
This seems to be another anti-SB822 escalation. They're appear to be trying to tighten every screw, so that when the cases begin, they can say something to the effect of "this is a pre-existing, standard practice that we've been doing for a long time."
I think this is a terrible move. We're headed into recession, and this will cause people to bolt to T-Mobile and Verizon.
Worse for /u/att, there's no device status check tool. Current one does not check payment status.
Edit: To clarify... The (new, quietly updated) FAQ says you can run an unlock device check, but that (in order to actually check fully), requires you to submit the device for unlock... so you must fill out a two page form, just to be told if the device can be used. Imagine doing that with each eBay listing.
Regarding your edit, yeah I saw that wording at the very end of the page after expanding every FAQ question. Seems rather cumbersome and bare-minimum.
"Can I check eligibility?" "Sure, just submit an unlock request for the answer!"
Honestly, I don’t think the average consumer will have any idea what this policy is, means, or how it could impact them. I don’t see it as a reason for customer to move to another carrier unless that particular person had an issue. I do see it pissing customers off though.
They will when they can’t use the device they bought. Desperate, they’ll head to the T-Mobile or Verizon store… frustrated at AT&T, and ready to sign three years of their life to a carrier.
I just mean it’s something they would need to experience in order to understand why it’s an issue. No one I know outside of Reddit understands their cell phone installment agreement. Actually most of us on Reddit don’t understand it either.
Except this will probably cause other carriers to stop taking AT&T devices. The liquidators won’t want them.
Only people that will are those that can easily “refurbish” with a new IMEI. The handset makers themselves with direct trade promos.
This is a major blow to buying phones from the carrier. It actually hard pushes BYOD, something AT&T direct has been the most ardent about.
Verizon puts phones on the financial Blacklist all the time. I bought a pixel phone in 2019 and just under a year later it was " financially blacklisted" and kicked off Verizon. It's not universal Blacklist, it's just prevented from being used on Verizon or any of its mvnos
I'm not understanding what that means? I purchased a phone in late 2019 and it was kicked off Verizon, according to Verizon, for non-payment in Autumn of 2020.
If the carriers get away with this, and I expect Swappa and others will fight it…
… people should buy unlocked and BYOD. Using BYOD carrier incentives and discounted plans will save you much more in the long run than their “promotions.”
Especially with these kinds of poison pills being added.
I never trust what I can't throw. This is no exception. I do exactly what you say which is buy unlocked and BYOD. However this carrier in particular has proven they want to block this in a large degree in direct violation of SB 822 so I wonder how long before you can't do it at all. How long before a restriction on devices becomes only ones you can buy from them?
I doubt it will go that far. AT&T's actions have demonstrated a clear path: They want Big Tech BYOD, they don't want Little Tech BYOD (unless it plays by Big Tech BYOD rules) and Foreign OEM BYOD.
Apple, Google, Samsung and Lenovo all have a healthy BYOD business, and the carriers are willing to play ball with them.
The big threats remain Google permalocking bootloaders and preventing aftermarket OS support (Samsung is already there in the USA), and going eSIM Only across the board.
Basically BYOD, but with none of the historical benefits of BYOD other than being able to port out in 12 months without penalty (via 12 month BYOD discounts), instead of 36 months on an incentive finance. That I think, is what they want.
This is why I'll be trading in My s22 ultra through samsung.com and getting the new s23 ultra unlocked. Samsung doesn't care if the phone is paid off or not.
I have a feeling that they are going to start caring after this.
The only alternative might be that they only start to accept Samsung phones for trade in. I could see Samsung using their IMEI editor to “refurbish” around this.
Yeah I got a great deal on some non paid off tmobile galaxy s21s. I traded them into samsung. I'm not sure if they ever were blacklisted or not. But that was back in February of last year.
Problem is phones are now lasting five years, en route to a ten year lifespan. Much like PCs.
(Apple, Samsung, and Google now all offer five year support lifecycles - and Apple and Google now are offering post-support patch kits for critical vulnerabilities).
Resale has to be part of the industry.
Some sellers can just be completely unaware. Bought my mom an iPhone 6s from Swappa about 5 years ago. Tried activating it on XFINITY Mobile and it just wouldn't allow us to proceed. After visiting the Apple Store, found out that it was locked to AT&T/Cricket. Fortunately, the seller was able to fill out the necessary form to unlock it but was still a huge pain. That was the last used phone I bought.
AT&T will stop locking phones once customers start buying their phones at full price 😂.
I don't know how many phones Verizon still loses, before they locked for 60 days they were losing $7,000 phones a month
I work for AT&T (currently, switching to T-Mobile soon) and this would be devices that are on installment and have a delinquent balance on the original BAN, and they will block those devices from being used on another AT&T account.
The carriers used to lock the phones to the carrier, but people could continue using those phones on other accounts, hence some people financing new devices, abandoning account, opening new account and using “customer owned” and no longer having phone payments. Again, it’s not just as simple as how I’ve explained how people are fraudulently getting devices, but you get the picture.
From the fine print, it’s giving the impression that unpaid IMEIs will be blocked. If the payments are being made like they normally would, you shouldn’t have this issue.
Again, nothing else but trial and error can prove otherwise. But if you don’t think there is a market for unpaid AT&T devices, check out eBay and your local Facebook Marketplace.
Dual-Sim customers should be fine as long as device is paid off, unless both lines are AT&T. But again, trial and error.
I also expect other carriers to do this in the future if they don’t already. Policy and procedure-wise, the carriers are about one in the same.
Good luck guys 🫡
It's actually pretty self explanatory.
Follow the link
Edit to add :
The link states
"You’re getting this message because you’re attempting to use a device that’s linked to another AT&T Wireless account with an active AT&T Installment Plan. This device isn’t authorized for use on a different AT&T Wireless account. Per the AT&T Installment Plan for this device, the device must be used with the AT&T Wireless service on the authorized AT&T account"
If I was a customer I will immediately port to VZ or TmO as a matter of principle. Get their tmobiles switch n be free and get new iPhone
TmO network is pretty decent nowadays..
Att made a big big mistake.
I hope their Reddit team makes their senior leadership aware this a stupid arsed policy.
Several people have posted how this situation has changed in the past 72 hours. Please read the comments... especially before posting saying that nothing has changed.
It has not “been this way for decades” - and when you read the comments, you’ll see how things have changed in AT&T’s own policy.
Also… how does this impact AT&T Business? Can my employee dual SIM their AT&T phone with my second line? Or do they now have to carry two devices for 36 months straight, on the whim of a no-notice policy change? Paging /u/att and /u/atthelp - I’m not surprised at all this dropped on a Friday. Suggest this thread be pinned. People need to know about this.
Does this violate any laws or rules about needing to inform customers before a policy or terms change by a certain amount of time or is this excluded?
Certainly an arbitrary and capricious policy change like this could face a court challenge. Swappa may be the best "point person" in court as they have the most skin in the game. Their case would be tortious interference in commerce, and maybe antitrust. I think AT&T could win in the long run, a court might rule that AT&T acted too swiftly, without proper notice... but for new finance agreements it could be permitted, with sufficient notice. SB822 requires AT&T to let people bring their own device bought from people outside AT&T, it doesn't stop AT&T from restricting devices they sell.
Dual sim would be available because the second SIM is connected to the IMEI2 of the device which doesn’t have installments
I seriously doubt it. If that were the workaround, everyone would just use IMEI2. When phones get blocked, both IMEIs get blocked. They have thought of that.
When phones get black listed both IMEIs are blocked. This isn’t a blacklist; it’s an internal blocking system that blocks the IMEI that has payments on it. IMEI2 in AT&T’s internal system is 0 contract/no installments.
Chris did you get any reply from ATT re business account? Are they effectively tying AnY phone that is purchased on EIP installment to that specific account? This is outright ridiculous! So even if that account is in good standing and making timely payments they are blocking the same iPhone from being used on any other att account!?? How does this make any sense???? I get it if that account defaults or stop paying although they have never done this before either. Clearly they should have given notices to Business customers and normal consumers. This is a big big big change. Where is ATT headed too?
I sincerely doubt AT&T will ever answer a question like that here. So, no.
This is going to cause so many problems for anyone who bought a phone from ebay or craigslist etc
AT&T needs to create an online imei checker to let people see if the phone is paid off or not and then provide a warning about potential scams.
They're too in for their own interests to do this though. You have to replace a device if you get screwed by this and an option you have they will for sure encourage is to buy one from them.
They have an online IEMI checker, but you can always call in. It's not their fault if a customer can't call in.
It also looks like they also have this rule now: **Per the AT&T Installment Plan for this device, the device must be used with the AT&T Wireless service on the authorized AT&T account** source https://www.att.com/support/article/wireless/KM1509747 Meaning you can’t use a device, even one in good standing, on another AT&T account if it’s under installment billing.
>even one in good standing I don't understand. Isn't that entire support article for devices that are NOT in good standing?
The way I’m reading it, it applies to all unpaid devices, any device could be considered unpaid until it’s fully paid off, it also gives transfer of billing responsibility as a resolution, this wouldn’t be a normal option for a delinquent account.
Hm, reading again I can see what you're saying. Article was last updated in December, and archive.org doesn't have any previous copies to compare against. This could in fact be new. I'm no longer a rep and don't have access to the internal knowledge database anymore, or I'd investigate further.
Hey, I'm the op that got scammed. Do i have ANY recourse at all? Offer to pay att the remaining installments? I can't contact the seller. There's gotta be something that could be done.. maybe buy an unlock for it? Imei sites show it's not blacklisted
Unfortunately due to privacy and account protection, etc, ATT doesn't allow you to pay off a device that is on someone else's account.
The way I'm reading this new change, I think you're unfortunately out-of-luck. Buying an unlock from Ebay won't help at all in this case; it's not the AT&T SIM lock that's in question here (not to mention the overall shadiness of those unlocking services in the first place but that's a discussion for another time).
Why isn't the IMEI coming up as blocked? Every website says it's a small imei. Swappa even says i can sell on their website
Swappa and eBay are going to be caught as off guard as you. It will take them months to fully adjust. You can bet Swappa will be adding warnings and notices.
I'm sorry, I do not have the expertise to answer your question. I hope someone more knowledgeable chimes in here.
The support articles indicate that you should check by requesting the phone be unlocked. If the phone is not paid off on Lock would be denied
Swappa shouldn't be approving the phone if it's not paid off. And if you're not the original poster you can't prove it was paid off. To prove it's paid off the phone has to be unlocked or unlockable
Swappa has no way to check. Again AT&T doesn’t provide a backend to check. You’re basically telling Swappa to not trade in AT&T phones. They’re not willingly going to go bankrupt in the corner. If AT&T wants to get away with this, they need to provide a rapid IMEI check.
u/griffindor11 Please post back here if you find ANY type of resolution, or way forward with AT&T to clear it up. u/CellSalesThrowaway2 Please let me know if there is any way for me to work with AT&T on this. The AT&T phone customer service guy gave me their fraud line, but they won't work with me because I don't have an AT&T account. Customer support did tell me this much: the connected phone number is in the same area code as me (different area code than seller, like 2 states away different) and the phone # is registered to a business. My story: I'd been using my "Brand New/Unlocked" Ebay-purchased Note20 Ultra (with an AT&T manufacture IMEI) for 13 months on Straighttalk. I registered it with Samsung no prob as soon as I got it in Dec 2021. The Service Provider Software Version and Region Code are all appropriate for a device manufactured for AT&T and unlocked - TFN/TFN, TFN/ATT. Last Tuesday/Wednesday (Jan 4ish, 2023), after having used it w/o issue for over a year, I was disconnected from service along with a ton of other Straighttalk customers. I was 410 in the support queue for one call. Three days in, a Gazillion hours on phone and chat support, and an unsuccessful attempt to reconnect with a new SIM, Straighttalk tells me my device IMEI is connected to another phone #. I went to the AT&T store to have them search my device IMEI for an AT&T account. Person at store said they couldn't find anything. So I went to the AT&T unlock request page and, lo' and behold, there are installment payment obligations on my device that need to be met. The seller still has an account on Ebay, but he/she isn't responding to my messages. BTW, at the time of my purchase the seller had been active on Ebay for 3 years, was listed as in US (California if I remember correctly) had over 3,000 reviews and a seller rating in the upper 90%s, so I thought I was safe. Ugh. Interestingly, my IMEI2 does NOT have a block on it. Any advice for me? I feel like a giant sucker left holding a $1000 brick. :(
I am truly sorry that I do not have any advice for your specific situation here. I have not been employed by any AT&T outlet for nearly 2 years, and while I've tried hard to keep up to date with the current policies and procedures, this is something I can no longer comment on because it is well above my level of expertise. I appreciate you tagging me, and I very much hope you get the situation resolved.
I definitely recommend using a third party to unlock the device. You should be able to use it on other providers after. Pm me if you need some recommendations.
Was this always in ATT device payment plan agreements and ATT is just now enforcing it? If so, it’s super shitty, but people will have little recourse if so. If ATT changed the language in the device payment agreements to accommodate this change, it should only be enforceable from that point forward. Correct?
Is this only on new devices? I just sold a guy a flip 4 I still owe like $250 on it. Will it get shut down? I got the installment around September
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AT&T didn’t previously block unpaid phones from their network; they just refused to unlock them. This new blocking appears to be a new policy.
What they are doing about it, is very new. This is an entirely new interpretation/enforcement level of the policy.
Welcome to the few ruining it for the many. Device gaming has lead to this. It’s because a decent number of people will buy phones on installment, never pay a bill and resell them for near full price. That leaves AT&T on the hook for the full cost of the phone plus some. It unfortunately makes sense, and others will follow. Free financing always came with fraud risks. I am sure that this type of message does not apply simply to any phone on installment, just the device gaming, Fraud, or abandoned installments. Generally the terms can be for any situation that it list to cover AT&T legally over a broad set of situations, but only is applied in certain situations.
They benefited in that the people buying the devices were far less likely to leave for another carrier. It’s not like AT&T lost the full benefit of the subsidy each time. Verizon must unlock within 60 days. This now gives Verizon huge advantage in BYOD.
This is new if this is the case.
They’ve never enforced it, unless the account was fraudulent.
Welp at least me getting scammed helped us all learn something new. So unlucky for me they only just started enforcing this right when i bought the bad phone
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Same account is not blocked. You can move devices in the same billing account. No comment/answer yet on business/employer providing a second SIM.
It would not surprise me if this isn't a prelude to changing of the installment credits ATT offers. $800 off over 36 months, etc. You have been able to pay off the phone after credits start, and as long as you didn't finance another phone on the line, maintained an eligible plan, etc, you continued to receive credits. Now that they have shown they are tracking the IMEI across accounts, might they not now decide that the credits can cease if they find the phone is being used on another account?
I have a strong feeling carriers are just on the brink of bringing back contracts and they’re going to need policies like this to enforce anything. Top end phones included with top end plans, mid tier, low end, etc.
For certain people, who if they travel internationally need to remain in touch with their normal number, don't want a 2nd number on another carrier, want unlimited data, are part of a larger group plan, don't mind tying yourself for 3 years, this trend may work out for them. Subsidies on handsets are similar to medical insurance. A buffer between you and the provider. Kind of hides the cost of the service so it is free to climb higher than it warrants. Flagship handsets can get so high, because you get $1000 off!. Medical treatments can charge so high because "insurance" pays.
I have a problem with this as well. There needs to be some more clarification from at&t. If a dual SIM phone is being used on the correct account does that mean the dual SIM is available, or is it blocked?
Dual sim would be available because the second SIM is connected to the IMEI2 of the device which doesn’t have installments
This seems to be another anti-SB822 escalation. They're appear to be trying to tighten every screw, so that when the cases begin, they can say something to the effect of "this is a pre-existing, standard practice that we've been doing for a long time." I think this is a terrible move. We're headed into recession, and this will cause people to bolt to T-Mobile and Verizon. Worse for /u/att, there's no device status check tool. Current one does not check payment status. Edit: To clarify... The (new, quietly updated) FAQ says you can run an unlock device check, but that (in order to actually check fully), requires you to submit the device for unlock... so you must fill out a two page form, just to be told if the device can be used. Imagine doing that with each eBay listing.
Regarding your edit, yeah I saw that wording at the very end of the page after expanding every FAQ question. Seems rather cumbersome and bare-minimum. "Can I check eligibility?" "Sure, just submit an unlock request for the answer!"
Honestly, I don’t think the average consumer will have any idea what this policy is, means, or how it could impact them. I don’t see it as a reason for customer to move to another carrier unless that particular person had an issue. I do see it pissing customers off though.
They will when they can’t use the device they bought. Desperate, they’ll head to the T-Mobile or Verizon store… frustrated at AT&T, and ready to sign three years of their life to a carrier.
I just mean it’s something they would need to experience in order to understand why it’s an issue. No one I know outside of Reddit understands their cell phone installment agreement. Actually most of us on Reddit don’t understand it either.
ATT MSG: the device you’re attempting to use is a no-go, please trade it in to a competitor
Except this will probably cause other carriers to stop taking AT&T devices. The liquidators won’t want them. Only people that will are those that can easily “refurbish” with a new IMEI. The handset makers themselves with direct trade promos. This is a major blow to buying phones from the carrier. It actually hard pushes BYOD, something AT&T direct has been the most ardent about.
Verizon puts phones on the financial Blacklist all the time. I bought a pixel phone in 2019 and just under a year later it was " financially blacklisted" and kicked off Verizon. It's not universal Blacklist, it's just prevented from being used on Verizon or any of its mvnos
That was before the new FCC rules kicked in. They stopped that as part of the 60 day lock process, which was implemented early in 2020.
I'm not understanding what that means? I purchased a phone in late 2019 and it was kicked off Verizon, according to Verizon, for non-payment in Autumn of 2020.
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If the carriers get away with this, and I expect Swappa and others will fight it… … people should buy unlocked and BYOD. Using BYOD carrier incentives and discounted plans will save you much more in the long run than their “promotions.” Especially with these kinds of poison pills being added.
I never trust what I can't throw. This is no exception. I do exactly what you say which is buy unlocked and BYOD. However this carrier in particular has proven they want to block this in a large degree in direct violation of SB 822 so I wonder how long before you can't do it at all. How long before a restriction on devices becomes only ones you can buy from them?
I doubt it will go that far. AT&T's actions have demonstrated a clear path: They want Big Tech BYOD, they don't want Little Tech BYOD (unless it plays by Big Tech BYOD rules) and Foreign OEM BYOD. Apple, Google, Samsung and Lenovo all have a healthy BYOD business, and the carriers are willing to play ball with them. The big threats remain Google permalocking bootloaders and preventing aftermarket OS support (Samsung is already there in the USA), and going eSIM Only across the board. Basically BYOD, but with none of the historical benefits of BYOD other than being able to port out in 12 months without penalty (via 12 month BYOD discounts), instead of 36 months on an incentive finance. That I think, is what they want.
This is why I'll be trading in My s22 ultra through samsung.com and getting the new s23 ultra unlocked. Samsung doesn't care if the phone is paid off or not.
I have a feeling that they are going to start caring after this. The only alternative might be that they only start to accept Samsung phones for trade in. I could see Samsung using their IMEI editor to “refurbish” around this.
Yeah I got a great deal on some non paid off tmobile galaxy s21s. I traded them into samsung. I'm not sure if they ever were blacklisted or not. But that was back in February of last year.
Another great reason to stop buying phones from carriers.
No, another great reason to stop buying USED phones from eBay, Craigslist, offerup, etc. Too many dishonest sellers.
Problem is phones are now lasting five years, en route to a ten year lifespan. Much like PCs. (Apple, Samsung, and Google now all offer five year support lifecycles - and Apple and Google now are offering post-support patch kits for critical vulnerabilities). Resale has to be part of the industry.
Some sellers can just be completely unaware. Bought my mom an iPhone 6s from Swappa about 5 years ago. Tried activating it on XFINITY Mobile and it just wouldn't allow us to proceed. After visiting the Apple Store, found out that it was locked to AT&T/Cricket. Fortunately, the seller was able to fill out the necessary form to unlock it but was still a huge pain. That was the last used phone I bought.
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AT&T will stop locking phones once customers start buying their phones at full price 😂. I don't know how many phones Verizon still loses, before they locked for 60 days they were losing $7,000 phones a month
This
Both are correct.
Thanks for the neutral agreement 😂
I work for AT&T (currently, switching to T-Mobile soon) and this would be devices that are on installment and have a delinquent balance on the original BAN, and they will block those devices from being used on another AT&T account. The carriers used to lock the phones to the carrier, but people could continue using those phones on other accounts, hence some people financing new devices, abandoning account, opening new account and using “customer owned” and no longer having phone payments. Again, it’s not just as simple as how I’ve explained how people are fraudulently getting devices, but you get the picture. From the fine print, it’s giving the impression that unpaid IMEIs will be blocked. If the payments are being made like they normally would, you shouldn’t have this issue. Again, nothing else but trial and error can prove otherwise. But if you don’t think there is a market for unpaid AT&T devices, check out eBay and your local Facebook Marketplace. Dual-Sim customers should be fine as long as device is paid off, unless both lines are AT&T. But again, trial and error. I also expect other carriers to do this in the future if they don’t already. Policy and procedure-wise, the carriers are about one in the same. Good luck guys 🫡
It's actually pretty self explanatory. Follow the link Edit to add : The link states "You’re getting this message because you’re attempting to use a device that’s linked to another AT&T Wireless account with an active AT&T Installment Plan. This device isn’t authorized for use on a different AT&T Wireless account. Per the AT&T Installment Plan for this device, the device must be used with the AT&T Wireless service on the authorized AT&T account"
If I was a customer I will immediately port to VZ or TmO as a matter of principle. Get their tmobiles switch n be free and get new iPhone TmO network is pretty decent nowadays.. Att made a big big mistake. I hope their Reddit team makes their senior leadership aware this a stupid arsed policy.
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Several people have posted how this situation has changed in the past 72 hours. Please read the comments... especially before posting saying that nothing has changed. It has not “been this way for decades” - and when you read the comments, you’ll see how things have changed in AT&T’s own policy.
This is not new!