Mobile internet providers that offer ‘free’ laptops are misleading consumers, the head of a trade body has said.
ITACS chairman Matthew Woolley wrote in a blog for PCR: “What is actually happening with these deals is a form of rental or leasing but, for some reason known only to the companies that make the offers, the word ‘free’ is used. Why is this?”
“When looked at properly, alternative contracts are available without the laptops and they cost less – so how can the laptop be free? If you read some of the contracts carefully, you will notice that the laptop might actually belong to the company that gave it to you for ‘free’,” he added.
Many major mobile retailers offer free notebooks or netbooks with some of their internet packages. Woolley claims that by accepting one of these deals, customers limit their choice of hardware.
To read Matthew Woolley’s blog in full, click here.
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