Wal-Mart cracks the whip on prepaid phone purchases
There's plenty of us who aren't exactly fond of commitments, especially those multi-year types that wireless providers try to rope you into whenever they drop a snazzy new phone. But if you're looking to snag a prepaid GoPhone / TracFone for the entire family, you may have to take your business somewhere other than Wally World. The world's largest retailer is cracking down on "entrepreneurs" (read: notorious phone hackers) who are buying the subsidized handsets "by the hundreds to resell for profit," by reducing the amount of prepaid mobiles one can purchase from three to two. While "two national carriers" voiced support for Wal-Mart's decision, the only confirmed provider was said to be Cingular, who certainly doesn't stand to profit from selling prepaid devices sans (pricey) prepaid air time. While the company hasn't exactly figured out how to stop tricksters from circumventing the system by purchasing multiple units at varying registers, at least the restrictions give parents with teenage triplets (or quadruplets) a valid excuse to delay their gratification.













Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mobile360 @ Oct 21st 2006 9:40AM
I need to now find a way round this back to the drawing board need to make my 'MILLIONS' somehow.
Anthony @ Oct 21st 2006 12:16PM
I'm surprised at this. I personally can't think of anyone who'd buy one of the prepaid phones on ebay unlocked. I always figured that's why prepaid phones were so crummy: so no one would hack them & sell them.
Now, if Cingular starts selling the Nokia N95 prepaid, I'm all for hacking.
Sage MAS90 Guru @ Oct 21st 2006 1:27PM
Many of these prepaid phones will also work for people under a normal contract. For example when I've broken my t-mobile phone before I have used a prepaid Tmobile phone simply by swapping sim cards.
fetchy @ Oct 21st 2006 1:44PM
or to prevent people from making a lot of bombs out of them!?!?!
john @ Oct 21st 2006 3:17PM
These phones are often used by drug dealers so police cannot track their illegal activities. They use them and throw them away.
These phones also sell for a lot of money over in places like iraq where they are used to set off IEDs. Alledgidly they sell for as much $200 per phone over there.
scutmonkey @ Oct 21st 2006 3:33PM
Why doesn't the military just jam all cell phone broadcasting in Iraq or other hotspots where IED's are a problem? They have their own communications network, right?
sam cook @ Oct 21st 2006 5:51PM
Y are drug dealers and terriost the 1st things that pop up in ppls heads when u talk about prepaid phones??? 95% of them are used by law abiding citizens who either A) dont use a phone enough to justify a monthly bill B) cant afford a monthly bill or are credit chalanged or C) dont want the hassle of a contract.
just because 5% of the users use it for illegal activities doesnt mean all users should be grouped in that catagory.... i bet more illegal transaction are handled per day over contract plans than prepaid phones.
its this ignorance that allows the gov't to get away with stepping on ppls toes....have you heard about the guys arrested in michigan for going in to walmart and buying a couple hundred prepaids.... they where texas and (im from oklahoma) and they are constantly out of stock and are on back order alot.....i thought about saving some money on a few pay checks goin out of town and buy a few boxes ....buy @ $25 sell @ $35-40 ...its basic economics! They where arrested and never charged and still are being held with no charges.
pre paid phones are a service just like any other that can be used for good or bad but its up to the users just like any thing else