Sprint Charging $10 Fee to Nextel Subs Who Don't Upgrade

Sprint Nextel has begun notifying its iDEN Nextel customers that they will be charged an extra $10 per month beginning January 1, 2013. Sprint has already announced plans to shut down its iDEN network no later than June 30, 2013. Despite this looming shut-off date, some Nextel subscribers have yet to transition to CDMA-based devices and services. The new fee will be added to all remaining Nextel iDEN and PowerSource lines of service for each month the service remains active until the June 30 shut-off date. Sprint confirmed to Phone Scoop that the price increase does not apply to customers and/or devices using Sprint's nationwide CDMA network. Sprint spokesperson Mark Bonavia said to Phone Scoop in an email, "Customers that migrate prior to January will likely find a price plan comparable to what they have now. They are also eligible to receive a variety of very attractive device offers." According to Sprint, its CDMA-based DirectConnect service offers three times the service footprint that its iDEN PTT service does. Sprint hopes to refarm the 800MHz spectrum used by its iDEN network for enhanced CDMA voice services.

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