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AT&T Introduces Option For Faster Phone Upgrades

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(credit: Etienne Franchi/AFP/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — AT&T is making it easier for customers to upgrade their cellphones more frequently, as long as they're willing to pay more.

The new plan follows in the footsteps of T-Mobile US Inc.'s Jump, which provides device insurance and more frequent upgrades for $10 a month.

AT&T Mobility President and CEO Ralph de la Vega said, "With AT&T Next, customers can get the newest smartphone or tablet every year."

AT&T Inc., the country's second-largest cellphone carrier, says it's introducing an option called AT&T Next on July 26. Instead of paying, for example, $200 up front to buy a smartphone, customers would pay monthly installments of $15 to $50 on top of their service plan, depending on the device.

After a year, customers can trade in their phone and get a new one, paying no upgrade or activation fees. The Dallas-based company says a Samsung Galaxy S4 phone would require monthly installments of $32.

(©2013 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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