Samsung reportedly planning to launch its own phone leasing program

Along with the recent announcement of the iPhone 6S, 6S Plus and iPad Pro, Apple unveiled its own phone leasing program. Dubbed the iPhone Upgrade Program, this is Apple’s way of cutting out the mobile carriers and encouraging customers to purchase devices directly from Apple. In all, the program does offer quite a bit to consumers, as it also includes Apple Care+ and gives folks the freedom to activate their device on any carrier they wish. If you’re thinking you’d like something like that for your next Android phone, you may not have to wait much longer.

According to a new report from Forbes, Samsung is planning to launch a similar phone leasing program for its Galaxy phones for the U.S. market. The program could launch within the next few months, though an exact timeframe was not given. The report unfortunately didn’t offer up any other availability or pricing details.

As the smartphone market continues to stray away from the standard two-year contract through mobile service providers, it’s no surprise to see other OEMs think about launching services like this. Samsung has already launched its big flagship devices for the year, including the Galaxy S6, S6 Edge, Note 5 and S6 Edge+. This could definitely be a good way for the company to sell more devices at a time with no forthcoming product announcements.

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It should be noted that part of the draw to Apple’s leasing program is the inclusion of Apple Care+, which offers users expert support for their smartphones for two full years, and also provides some accidental damage coverage. There was no mention of Samsung launching a similar service for its Galaxy phones in the report, though it’s not too farfetched to think that the company could launch something along these lines.

So tell us, if the pricing structure is similar to Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program, would you be more inclined to purchase a Galaxy phone directly from Samsung? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.