Verizon confirms contract-free 4G LTE at same rates

Verizon Wireless apparently will offer no-contract 4G dongle service at the same rates as the on-contract pricing, which will come as a welcome surprise for some users. The no-contract price is the same as for a contract-based service: $50 for 5 GBytes or $80 for 10 GBytes, plus a $10 per GB overage.

The only difference is that the no-contract price for the modem is $249.99, as opposed to $99.99 on a two-year contract (after a $50 mail-in rebate).

The reason for contracts in the first place always has been to offset the subsidies on equipment that mobile service providers have been paying for as marketing cost.

Verizon confirms contract-free 4G LTE options: same rates, pricier modems -- Engadget