Yes, you read that correctly. Today T-Mobile announced that they endorse #SmartphoneEquality (complete with a hashtag). According to the press release,
… every T-Mobile customer who’s paid their wireless phone bill on time for 12 straight months will qualify for our very best device pricing on every smartphone and tablet we sell − including zero down with no interest and no credit check. This new approach puts the relationships we’ve built with loyal customers above their credit scores.
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Ultimately, this initiative will lower the barrier for millions more Americans to get a smartphone – the most transformational technology in our lifetime. At a time when mobile connectivity is sweeping the globe, the United States ranks a miserable 13th in the world in terms of smartphone penetration − behind a dozen countries including Australia, Ireland, Israel and Saudi Arabia among others. There are more than 100 million American adults who don’t have a smartphone according to data from Pew Research and the US Census Bureau. That’s 100 million too many.
So ignore those past-due credit card bills, the foreclosure notices on your house and car, and everything else that’s dragging your credit rating down. Just pay T-Mobile on time and you can get a cheap smartphone.
What could possibly go wrong?