In an official blog post on Sunday, June 9, bigwig US carrier AT&T announced its changed upgrade policy, under which the company has set a 24-month minimum term for the eligibility of its subscribers to receive upgrade pricing on all handsets or devices.

The changed upgrade policy, which became effective on June 9, implies that AT&T has increased the period of time for which subscribers will have to wait for upgrading their devices.

Prior to the changed policy, customers became eligible for device upgrades from AT&T on the completion of 20 months of their contract; but they will now have to wait for 24 months to be eligible for an AT&T-subsidized device.

The changed upgrade policy will be applicable to all new AT&T subscribers as well as the carrier's existing customers whose contract are scheduled to come to an end in March 2014 or later. However, Corporate Responsible Users with contractual upgrade terms will not be affected by the changed upgrade period.

Noting that the changed upgrade policy will essentially help the carrier align its device upgrade eligibility with its standard two-year wireless contract, AT&T said: "After completing six months of a contract, customers will be eligible for a partial discount off a device's retail price if they agree to a new two-year contract. Devices can also be purchased at full retail price without a two-year agreement."