Does Verizon usually waive early upgrade fees for big launches like this?

[FullMetalx117]

I just bought an iPhone 4s last year and want to get the iPhone 5 to take advantage of the 4g lte. Having a bigger screen is pretty nice too. However, I'm not sure if I really want to get one if I have to pay the addition $250 on top of the phone price. For big phone releases like is does Verizon waive any upgrade fees?

 

[PDFierro]

Verizon won't give you an early upgrade like AT&T does or did. Also, I believe the upgrade fee is mandatory.