Starting tomorrow, Jan 1, 2010, you can cancel your Sprint cellphone contract without early termination fee. They are increasing monthly regulatory fees from $.20 to $.40. This constitutes what is known as a “materially adverse change of contract” and means you can break the contract without penalty. An official Sprint spokesperson officially confirmed this for us. A few things to know:

* When you call, they will ask you why you are cancelling and try to get you to say you are unhappy with some other aspect of the service. You need to stick fast to your guns and insist, no matter what, that the only reason you are cancelling is because you are rejecting this materially adverse change in contract terms and conditions.

* Not looking forward to playing head-games over the phone? Some readers have had better luck using online chat. “They just copy-and-paste a few canned pleas for you to stay, and all you have to do is type no thanks,” says commenter ohenry. “Plus then you can save your chat.”

* Yes, you can keep your phone number and port it to another provider.

* Yes, you should be able to use this to switch to a month to month plan.

* You only have Jan 31, 2010 to cancel.

Give it a shot and report back on how it goes in the comments.

PREVIOUSLY: Sprint Fee Increase Is Your Chance To Escape Without Early Termination Fee

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