etf

Google adds second ETF to Nexus One contracts

Though we don't like it, we understand why we get stuck with an early termination fee (ETF) if we decide to cancel our cell phone contract before its end date. We get a discounted phone for signing a service agreement so it's natural that your carrier gets to ask for that money back if you skip out early.

The Nexus One, of course, is no exception to this rule. If you cancel your T-Mobile contract after the 14-day grace period, you'll have to shell out anywhere from $50 to $200 depending on when you cancel. That's … Read more

Verizon defends its ETF hike

A few weeks after the FCC sent an inquiry about its early termination fee (ETF) increase, Verizon has replied back with a seven-page missive of its own in defense of the fee hike. If you recall, Verizon increased its ETF from $175 to $350 specifically for "advanced devices," which we assume means smartphones like the Droid.

Verizon claims that the ETF allows the company to offer the phones at lower upfront prices and to reduce its losses if the customers do break their contracts early. Even with such a fee increase, Verizon claims it would still be losing … Read more

The 411 on early-termination fees (FAQ)

If you are considering buying a new BlackBerry, Android phone, or Netbook from Verizon Wireless, you better make sure you won't want to break your contract early, as the penalty for ditching your service before the end of the contract has just gotten a lot steeper.

But what does Verizon's move to increase early-termination fees mean for the rest of the wireless industry? That's a good question.

Early-termination fees are not new to the wireless industry. For as long as wireless operators have been selling and subsidizing cell phones, they've required customers to sign contracts. And … Read more

T-Mobile proposes settlement for early termination fees

Class action suits against carrier early termination fees (ETFs) are nothing new, but now it appears one case may come to an end.

Though it has yet to be approved by the court, T-Mobile has proposed a settlement in an $11.5 million class action suit filed in August 2008 in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. The suit alleges that T-Mobile broke federal and state laws when charging the ETFs.

The settlement would cover T-Mobile subscribers who were charged a flat-rate ETF from July 23, 1999 to February 19, 2009, or those whose service … Read more

The mob is my broker: Cake launching crowdsourced stock fund

The stock tracking and community site Cake Financial is getting some interesting new features, including its first branded financial instrument, an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that rolls up the best stock ideas from the Cake communuty.

Cake CEO Steve Carpenter believes that of the approximately $100 billion that consumers pay for stock management services, "a lot is wasted." He's built a service that identifies the stock picks from the best performing members in his community, and lets other users take advantage of their investing skills. Importantly, Cake doesn't show you just which stocks have done well … Read more