AT&T settles ETF case for $18m

Hey, if you’re a New Jersey AT&T subscriber and you paid a flat-rate ETF between January 1, 1998 and November 4, 2009, you’ve got a tiny bit of $18 million coming your way. That’s the settlement amount AT&T’s agreed to in this latest ETF class action — as usual in these cases, it’s far cheaper for AT&T to just throw out some cash than it is to fully litigate this thing, especially with the FCC breathing down its neck. Expect individual settlements to be relatively minor, while all the lawyers receive platinum underpants trimmed with only the finest jewels.

Update: It’s for all AT&T subs, not just the kids from the Shore.

Update 2: AT&T just sent us a statement about the settlement — the carrier wants to highlight that it’s the old ETFs that are involved here, and not the new pro-rated ones that we hate just as much. Check it:

We strongly deny any wrongdoing, and no court has found AT&T Mobility committed any wrongdoing regarding these fees. However, we have agreed to settle to avoid the burden and cost of further litigation.

It’s important to note that the litigation involves old early termination fee policies of the old AT&T Wireless and Cingular. In 2008 we introduced a new, more flexible early termination fee policy, in which we pro-rate the ETF if you are a new or renewing wireless customer who enters a one- or two-year service agreement.

Cool — now let’s talk about how customers who pay full price for handsets should pay a lower monthly fee that doesn’t include an equipment subsidy. That’s a policy we could totally get behind.

[Thanks, David]

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AT&T settles ETF case for $18m originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This post is tagged: AT&T, class action, ClassAction, etf, LawSuit, legal, New Jersey, NewJersey