AT&T is offering T-Mobile customers — and only T-Mobile customers — up to $450 to switch their wireless service to AT&T, but is the switch actually worth it? A close inspection of AT&T’s fine print suggests some customers might want to think twice.

According to AT&T, beginning Jan. 3, under the limited-time offer, T-Mobile customers who switch to AT&T can trade-in their current smartphone for a promotion card of up to $250, which can be used toward AT&T products and services.  Trade-in values will vary based on make, model and age of the smartphone, but many of the latest and most popular smartphones will qualify for a value of $250.  T-Mobile customers can receive an extra $200 credit per line when they transfer their wireless service to AT&T and choose an AT&T Next plan, buy a device at full retail price or activate a device they currently own. The “Next” plan offers customers a chance to upgrade to a new device every year under an installment plan that divides the retail price of the phone over 20 months.

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The Wall Street Journal’s ‘Digits’ explores the open marketing warfare between AT&T and T-Mobile. (3:34)

Although $450 sounds like an outstanding deal, some Wall Street analysts that usually panic when a company seems to be giving away the store, are still sleeping well at night.

“It’s not as great an offer as it appears on the surface,” Michael Hodel, equity analyst at Morningstar tells MarketWatch. “The fine print is critical.”

1. Not every smartphone will qualify for the $250 “promotional card.” Only the latest model smartphones showing no signs of wear and tear are going to earn full value. Customers with older feature or basic phones will not qualify for anything at all. Customers may be able to get just as much selling their old phone themselves.
2. AT&T is not offering a cash rebate. The value of the “promotional card” and the $200 ‘switch from T-Mobile’ bonus can only be spent on AT&T products and services. The promotional card will help defray the cost of buying a new smartphone from AT&T (which may not have the best price) and the $200 bonus will appear as a credit on a future AT&T bill.
3. By accepting the $200 bonus, customers give up any device subsidies, an important distinction if you want an Apple iPhone. AT&T’s device subsidy on this phone is higher than $200.
4. AT&T has tighter credit standards than T-Mobile. Customers with spotty credit may be asked to put down a deposit with AT&T before the company will take your business.

Legere

AT&T argues its offer will benefit T-Mobile customers by giving them access to the larger coverage area of AT&T’s wireless network and more widespread 4G service. But AT&T customers pay higher prices for access to that network. A T-Mobile customer is more likely to be sensitive to the price of the service — one of the strongest marketing points T-Mobile has in its favor. Most customers unhappy with T-Mobile’s less robust coverage tend to cancel service at the end of their contract (or earlier) and switch to either AT&T and Verizon Wireless.

According to an October report from MoffettNathanson Research, a typical T-Mobile family with 3-5 lines on a single account usually save around $50 a month off AT&T’s prices. That represents $600 a year in savings.

T-Mobile’s scrappy and aggressive marketing has had an impact, particularly on AT&T. Just a few years earlier AT&T tried to buyout T-Mobile in a consolidation move rejected by the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. After the merger collapsed, incoming T-Mobile CEO John Legere has long forgotten whatever niceties existed between the two companies when they were trying to join forces. Legere has been on the attack against both AT&T and Verizon Wireless all year, and the effort is clearly beginning to pay off as T-Mobile adds customers.

Last year at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Legere called AT&T’s network “crap” on stage. So when Legere crashed AT&T’s party at this year’s CES convention, still sporting his pink T-Mobile t-shirt, AT&T’s security guards threw him out.

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CNN calls T-Mobile’s John Legere the most dangerous man in wireless, for exposing “disgusting” AT&T and Verizon’s over 90% gross margin on their wireless services and their consumer unfriendly business practices. (2:41)

SaskTel is raising prices … and broadband speeds. (Image: CBC)

Internet access on the prairie is getting more expensive as provincial-owned phone company SaskTel notifies its Saskatchewan customers it is raising certain DSL and fiber broadband prices by $5 a month — a 14% rate hike.

Effective Feb. 1, prices for High Speed Classic DSL and fiber service will rise to at least $39.95 a month. For DSL customers, that means nearly $40 a month for 1.5Mbps service.

SaskTel, a crown corporation, is telling customers it needs the money to upgrade its network and maintain customer support.

The phone company has a bold plan to replace copper wire infrastructure with fiber to the home service in each of Saskatchewan’s nine largest communities: Saskatoon, Regina, Moose Jaw, Weyburn, Estevan, Swift Current, Yorkton, North Battleford, and Prince Albert. The fiber network, dubbed infiNET, is already operational in parts of Moose Jaw and will be introduced in Prince Albert this spring.

SaskTel has a range of price points for its fiber network ranging from $39.95 a month for 2/1Mbps service to 260/30Mbps service for $139.95 a month.

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Sasktel’s $800 million fiber to the home project is Canada’s most ambitious, because it will blanker urban, suburban, and near-rural customers. This video explores innovations Sasktel is finding to deal with Saskatchewan’s harsh climate, including fiber cables that stay flexible at -40 degrees and directional boring to quickly and inexpensively install underground fiber to homes. (3:28)

Getting Time Warner Cable’s heavily promoted reward card rebate, worth up to hundreds of dollars to customers switching providers or upgrading service, has proved a major hassle for some customers.

WFMY-TV’s consumer reporter began getting calls from people who cannot pry their legitimately requested reward card out of Time Warner Cable’s fingers no matter how hard they try.

“I have talked to 15 different people and all I get is a run-around,” Elizabeth Albright told the Greensboro, N.C. television station.

In some cases customers have waited months for the promised reward to no avail. Others believe they were cheated out of the rebate by a needlessly complicated rebate process they believe was designed to trip them up and out of luck.

The rebate process itself is complicated:

1. Time Warner Cable customers qualified for a rebate must first wait for a “rebate redemption code” to arrive, typically two weeks after installing or upgrading service.
2. With code in hand, customers are qualified to register for the reward on the company’s rebate website. But since Time Warner requires the rebate to be submitted within 30 days of installation, that two-week wait for a “redemption code” may leave customers with as little as 14 days to register.
3. Customers are then required to maintain and pay on time for cable service for at least three months.
4. After 90 days of service and on time payments, the company will start processing the rebate application, which takes an extra 1-2 months.
5. The rebate card should arrive in your mailbox within 14 days after mailing.

Failing to follow any of the steps automatically disqualifies you for the rebate reward. Once the card arrives, use it within six months to avoid “maintenance fees.” If the card gets lost or stolen, it can be replaced, but not for free. An extra fee applies.

Keeping all rebate documentation is critical if questions arise, you are rejected, or the rebate submission is lost. If Time Warner Cable refuses to honor your rebate request, offer them an alternative – credit your cable bill for an amount equal to the value of the missing rebate. In many cases, a supervisor will approve the request in the spirit of good customer relations, especially if you threaten to cancel service over the matter.

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Triad region residents in North Carolina are having a tough time getting their rebate reward cards from Time Warner Cable, reports WFMY-TV. (2:42)

Dr. John Malone’s Liberty Media is moving to acquire the 48 percent of SiriusXM it does not already own in a $10 billion all-stock deal that could have future implications for Malone’s interest in merging Charter Communications with Time Warner Cable.

Malone’s company has effectively controlled the satellite radio venture since bailing the company out with a loan during the Great Recession. Since assuming control, SiriusXM has raised prices and is earning more revenue from its subscribers in the U.S. and Canada.

Malone’s initial $1 billion investment is already valued at more than $10 billion, but as full owner Liberty will control a company worth $21.5 billion.

Malone

Through a carefully constructed transaction, the deal will be entirely tax-free for both companies and their shareholders. When complete, Liberty will be able to free up additional capital and flexibility which could prove useful to its ongoing investment in Charter Communications.

Should Charter formally bid for a Time Warner Cable takeover, Liberty Media may be called on to help finance the transaction expected to be worth at least $40 billion.

But don’t expect Malone’s Liberty Media to keep ownership of SiriusXM forever. Malone has a long history of increasing the value of his media assets for shareholders, usually with rate increases and cost cutting, and then spins the companies off in tax-free transactions.

Liberty Media has done exactly that with its former properties, including Discovery Communications, Starz and DirecTV.

Just months after starting to rollout a new generation of Comcast’s X1 “entertainment operating system” set-top boxes, the cable company is preparing to upgrade the cable television experience with X2.

Comcast, like many other cable operators, is gradually moving to IP and cloud capable set-top equipment as television transitions towards an all-digital platform. The traditional set-top box has proved expensive, cumbersome, and often annoying for customers trying to navigate through hundreds of cable television channels with a less-than-ideal on-screen program guide.

X2 hopes to change that perception with a customizable dashboard that learns viewer preferences over time and makes intelligent suggestions for customers looking for something to watch. Using a cloud based platform also means much easier upgrades. X2 also erases the line dividing traditional cable channels and streaming online video, which would allow Comcast to use its broadband network to distribute video programming and integrate social media.

X2 has, so far, been largely a “by-invitation” affair, with customers invited to preview the new interface on their current X1 equipment by pressing this key sequence with their remote control: EXIT-EXIT-EXIT-X-T-W-O

In addition to improving TV viewing, X2 also sets the stage for a cloud-based DVR being tested in Boston and Philadelphia and live-streaming Comcast’s TV lineup direct to wireless devices in the home.

A Comcast spokesperson tells us the X1 (and X2) platforms will be available to a substantial number of customers this year.

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Comcast produced this video showcasing the development of the X2 platform. (3:07)