Sure, but the big cost is <i>generally</i> consistent across phones. A $30/month difference definitely adds up over two years, but not enough that someone deciding which contract they're going into is going to make a different decision.<p>The costs are put off over a long enough time that people with ok incomes will go for the best phone instead of the $30 saving. It just isn't enough of a difference to elicit a gut level "let's look at alternatives" reflex. Margin whoring killed the Macintosh, not openness.<p>All this leads to where I think Android can actually get a beachhead outside of the geekier open source crowd- price conscious teenagers.