With T-Mobile trailblazing, Verizon CEO sees the end of phone subsidies as a 'great thing'

That was Big Red's chief comment during an interview today at the CES 2013 expo currently ongoing in Las Vegas. He actually joked that if the FDIC was willing to ban phone subsidies, Verizon will be all for it, and can "move to that very quickly," if the scheme proves popular with people.
Internal research and focus groups are one thing, however, and resistance to change a whole other, but the carriers have been warming up to the idea the whole of last year, and the trend is likely to increase in 2013, seeing the record profits they reap. All eyes are on T-Mobile now, which lets you pay for your phone on something like interest-free monthly payments, if you don't pony up the whole cash upfront, which, after all, the big two also do, jacking up plan prices to cover phone cost subsidies.
source: WSJ