Verizon Wireless, Cingular spar over handset promotions

Verizon Wireless and Cingular continued their retail battle this week with dueling promotional efforts centered on popular handsets. AT&T Inc.’s Cingular division is offering LG Electronics Co. Ltd.’s CU400, a W-CDMA phone, for free with a two-year contract, while Verizon Wireless is hoping to entice customers with discounts on three Motorola Inc. phones.
The promotions are just the latest example of the near-continuous price tweaking that all of the nation’s major carriers engage in, efforts aimed at winning customers with a precise mix of price and phone.
Cingular, the nation’s largest carrier, is pushing its CU400 flip phone that features Bluetooth, push to talk and support for the carrier’s newly launched W-CDMA network. Cingular previously sold the phone for $50 online with a two-year agreement.
As for Verizon Wireless, the carrier’s current promotion centers on Motorola’s popular phone models, the ever-hyped Razr as well as the Krzr and the Q smartphone. Verizon Wireless is selling the Razr online for $40, the Krzr for $50 and the Q for $80, all with a two-year contract. The carrier previously offered the Q for $150, the Krzr for $100 and the Razr for $50 online.
Interestingly, it also appears Cingular recently raised the price of its GSM-based Krzr from $100 to $150.