They Want Me Back

Riddle me this! I've been with Optimum a month now with their triple play package. Before I left Verizon, I used their online offerings to figure out that it would cost me $125 monthly for an equivalent triple play package from Verizon's Fios. I went a step further, and called them to see what price I could get from a real live person, and told them I was leaving for Optimum, and why. They quoted me the same $125 price, and of course, canceled my account when I told them I was leaving for Fios.

What makes no sense to me is that these companies won't work too hard to retain an existing customer, but they'll work much harder to get you as a new customer. Last week I got a generic letter from Verizon about their Fios. Just for fun, I put the same setup in online, which is for one standard STB, and an HD DVR for a second TV with the lower tiered internet (10/2) and the phone (there's only one package that's unlimited across the US & Canada). What I don't get is that now the package is going for $114 (12 months, which is what it was before as well).

How the heck can the same thing drop by $120 for the year now that I'm not a customer?

Jonas

Gold Standard Phone Quality Shows Patina of Age

There's one simple task that's often a royal PITA, and that's the once monthly to my utility companies to enter my monthly meter reading. It's either that, or get the estimated bill which is curiously always substantially higher than what I actually used.

So, what's the big deal? Read the meter, record the numbers, make a phone call, right? Well, it's often not so simple.

Calling the utility company puts me into the voice tree straight from hell. Add in that the account number is many digits, and it repeats them back to verify. Unfortunately, the system is also voice activated, and any noise sets it off, and restarts. Last month, despite pressing the mute button on the phone, it took four phone calls, and then I eventually had to speak to someone anyway after holding for a while. Then I had to repeat it for the electricity as well. Don't even get me started that I can enter it online as the last time I tried that, I couldn't even establish an account and gave up after half an hour. So it goes, month after month.

I had figured out a while ago that a newer phone can help. When I replaced my staticky 2.4 GHz one, it was better for a while, but the last few months, it's been getting progressively worse.

Today, something surprising happened. As I placed the call, I realized that this was the first month I was doing it on VoIP, and not on copper. For whatever reason, both meter readings went through on the first try without any issue. This hasn't happened for months with my previous Verizon copper phone service.

I'm guessing that the rotting aging copper phone lines were just introducing too much interference, although even if I wasn't hearing it, the phone voice menu was. In any event, I think that the digital connection is just cleaner. Let's see what goes on next month. In the meantime, we'll see what we can do about gasoline prices...

Jonas

2nd Thought: Maybe it wasn't only the phone line, but the DSL piggybacked onto the copper voice line was throwing the whole thing off?

Stampede From Copper Phone Lines

Recently, the overwhelming customer service response I received from Verizon practically forced me to dump my phone company, and replace them with the local cable company, Optimum. While trading one giant provider for another is hardly that different, at least they were nicer, and communicated better. Apparently I'm not the only customer that "cut the copper:"

With features like unlimited domestic phone calls, cable companies have continued to take business away from rivals such as Verizon Communications Inc., which lost 3 million residential lines for traditional phone service in the first quarter, with total home lines down 11 percent from 2007. Verizon added 263,000 net new FiOS TV and 262,000 FiOS Internet subscribers.

Sure, they get a higher monthly fee from the Fios customers, but they lost ten times as many copper phone line customers. I'm sure my copper phone line account was quite profitable for Verizon as with cell phones, they get used less and less. It doesn't make any business sense to me to lose customers ten times faster than they can find new ones, and this while they're deploying Fios faster than they can run the cables.

While Verizon may have the better product from a technical standpoint, at the rate they're going, it's not going to matter. In the meantime, Optimum Voice, with all the features they throw in was a significant upgrade from my New York Telephone/ Nynex Verizon phone service that hadn't changed in the last three decades. Verizon is facing an uphill battle with their user base eroding, but they just haven't figured it out yet.

Jonas

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

Verizon Won't Go Quietly Into That Good Night

So, yesterday, I spoke to the Verizon folks, and they couldn't do better on the price for "triple play." I told them I was leaving for Optimum, and reconfirmed my install date of next week. While I had them on the phone, I also confirmed, not once, not twice, but three times to keep my phone service intact until next week when my number would be ported.

The best laid plans, and some things in life are inevitable, etc, etc. Anyway, the home phone was disconnected today. When I called the house number, I just got the message "this number not in service," and that terrible sinking feeling. I called up Verizon, and they told me they didn't do it, they no longer had anything to do with it, and it was the fault of my new telephone provider. They suggested that I contact Optimum. Something didn't sound so Kosher with that, but I figured I'd call cable anyway.

I got in touch with Optimum. They explained that they had no control of the number until the port date, which is next week, and so far they had only requested the number, that's it. I also confirmed that they would send a real Optimum installer, and not subcontract it out. They also confirmed that the number would be unpublished, and the date/time of the install. The person I spoke too also told me that "this happens all the time," and this exact same thing happened to her. Her theory is that "Verizon doesn't want to lose you," and they'll make it difficult to leave. I was starting to think that this was too much fingerpointing, and no answers.

Then, I called Verizon back. When I spoke to them, I reminded them that I was with them from before they were Verizon, before they were NYNEX, (one of the "baby bells") when they were NY Telephone decades ago. I also told them it was vitally important to get my phone back on pronto, and before I started to tell them that this would be all over the internet, they told me it would be back on within six hours.

Thankfully, I'm happy to report that my history lesson paid off, and I was reconnected about two hours later. Hence the title of this piece, those copper lines must make them a fortune, and they're not gonna let you leave without a hassle. Geez, all of this because my DSL modem died, and they tried to shake me down for a new one.

Jonas
Soon to be a VoIP Champion

Too Many Taxes

Remember that expression about the certainties of life: "death and taxes?" Well, I sure do, and especially during the month of April when we file our 1040's it's all too fresh in my mind.

I've been waiting to hear from Verizon to see if they could do better than Optimum for a triple play deal. I figure if they can come in at a similar price, I'd be willing to stick with them. Even given my recent DSL issue, I decided that I'd simply offer competitive bidding, and see where the dollars fell.

So, today I called up Verizon, who I had expected to call and hadn't, and asked for a better deal. I started with the 800 number, and this was for Fios for the nation. The lady explained "the deal" and told me the best they could do was $132 with taxes for triple play with a HD-DVR and another standard STB (set top box). When I told her nicely that she was over by at least $25 monthly, she connected me to the local office "for a better deal." She was also unsure of the taxes as they vary by locality.

I then bounced to a generic service rep, who then connected me to the Retention Specialist. We'll call her Ms. A, and she was far more pleasant than everyone else I had spoken to at Verizon during the course of the last week. I explained to her what had happened with my DSL, now deactivated, and how they were on the verge of losing this household, after decades to the cable company. What could Verizon do?

She told me I could go with a Verizon Unlimited phone plan for $19.99 (Freedom Essentials?). At first I'm thinking that I've been paying around $25 for a copper phone line for years now, and then paying my the call. I was thinking this was a really good deal, and I've been ripped off for many years. Anyway, I then ask her what the tax is on this, and I'm told that it will run around $38 monthly. So much for the bargain.

I plunge onward, and when we add in Fios internet, we are up to $72, including tax, and a 6 month discount. The discount is for 6 months, and the contract is for 12, and then the price goes up by $10 for the remaining 6 months, although I could "call and ask for another discount," but I'm not sure that they'd really do much for you at that point. Still, I plodded on.

She explains to me that because Verizon was traditionally a phone company, the user gets taxed on the phone portion of the bill. Because the cable companies are traditional TV providers, users get taxed on the TV part of the bill. I will say that first, this is unfair to Verizon because it makes their service more expensive just because of taxes that date back to the Spanish American War when a phone was a luxury. However, as a consumer, who hates to pay tax on things as this is hardly value, I'll opt for the less taxing one just on principle.

Next, I ask her about a triple play. I point out my phone bill which has a triple play deal for $94.99. When she adds in the boxes, we're back up to $132. I tell her that Optimum is coming next week, and the $102 + tax price I signed up for,at least for the first year. She tells me that the best they can do is to give me the standard box for free for 12 months, and $10 off the internet for 6 months. It comes to $116 monthly, which is simply more than I'm willing to go for right now.

While she did let me know that Verizon charges $55 for each cable run to the TV set, she also pointed out that the phone won't work from cable if their modem goes out. She didn't point out that they have only 25 hi def channels, although she claimed they were sharper, which I've heard. I thanked her, and told her that I was going to cable. I figure the worst is that I try it, and go back to Verizon, but after the $55 coax has been run to both my sets. All of this from a DSL modem dying...

Jonas

Life In the Slow Lane

You know what they say about "Act in haste, repent in leisure?" Well, after my Verizon DSL modem kicked the proverbial bucket, I canceled my DSL. Suddenly, I'm off the grid, and the WWW. Before I go into "internet withdrawal," I had to figure out a way to connect somehow as the cable triple play install isn't going down till next week due to scheduling issues.

While my last three desktops didn't have a dialup modem, my notebook does. Who knew it would come to this? So, forget about high speed connections, and streaming content. YouTube and flash are the enemy. I'm reduced to email, and low bandwidth websites for my internet fix. Thankfully, NetZero has a free plan that allows 10 hours a month, so I'm sure I'll have them all used up before the Optimum folks show up next week (I wasn't signing up for AOL no matter what).

In the meantime, no word from Verizon. I figure they'll call again when they get the request to port my phone number, which I'm totally guessing, will be later this week. My broken DSL modem has hit the bottom of the garbage pail, and I'm done with DSL. From now on, it's either cable modem or Fios- at least until something better comes along. If Verizon can offer me a triple play offer that's cheaper than Optimum I'll go for it, in the meantime, I'm humming the "You've got cable" tune that they played too many times last summer.

I've had a copper Verizon phone line for as many years as I've been alive, and that's decades at this point. I've also had DSL since 2005. If they wanted someone more loyal to their company as a customer, I don't think they were finding it, and my bill is always paid on time. If Verizon couldn't just send me a modem, and forced me to jump ship, then clearly their customer service is as screwed up as they say it is.

In the meantime, I'm counting the moments till I can download at more than 56k (not to mention upload at faster than a very pokey 36k), and that's downhill with a tailwind. I'll gladly endure a disconnected week because this will be worth it.

Jonas

In a related programming note, there will be no Nudgecast this week as dialup is going to allow this. Stay tuned to hear me rant about how this all turned out.

Gasps From Verizon On the Way Out

Well, I scheduled an install for Optimum to come and triple play things up around the house. As the DSL isn't working from Verizon, I figure I might as well cancel it in the meantime. I'll cancel the POTS (plain ol' telephone service) after the Optimum install.

Now, all of a sudden, Verizon wants to do something to keep me. Never mind that I had mentioned that I always pay the bill in full on time for years and years now. Never mind that I've been connected to the house for over three decades, and counting. Now that I'm leaving, they want to make it right.

On the phone, they offered to send me the modem for free. Yup, that's right, for free. That same hunk of plastic that was $59.99 before is now mine for free. They'll credit my downtime as well. The funny part is that they'll only do this if I sign up for a monthly 99 cent fee for a "modem maintenance plan." I'm guessing that they're thinking that they'll make this up long term.

While they'll give me the modem for free, and even the first month for free, I'm still not thrilled enough to come back. While they deserve for me to take the modem, and cancel next month, I'm not gonna play that game. Rather, I just told them to cancel it (ironically, these were the same folks that didn't want to sell it to me in the 1st place, and only wanted to sign me up for Fios), which they did reluctantly, after being passed around three times.

What do I want? Well, I've been with them a l-o-n-g time, and a faithful customer. I'm gonna triple play somewhere. I've requested that my number be ported to Optimum. I've started that process. I'm hoping that when they get that request, and call to retain me, they get really serious, sharpen their pencils, and can make me a more competitive offer than a free modem. If Optimum can do it for $102 monthly, plus tax, then why was Verizon looking to charge me $125 for the equivalent package today? I'd be willing to pay a little more for Fios over Optimum, but not 25% more. Besides, when I put this in under an address on the block that currently has cable, the price was only $114 for the year.

While the content will be spotty for the next weeks on TNL while this all plays out, I'm hoping this will all be worth it with some high speed goodness. Who knew that my DSL modem dying would cause all of this? In the meantime, I'll stay objective, and may the more competitive company win my business. When the dust settles, I'll be sure to let you all know how this played out.

Jonas

So Much For Fios

I'm a little dumbfounded that Verizon would let a customer of over three decades leave so quickly. Alas, I'm getting ahead of myself...

My modem died, and their only solution was to sell me a new one for $59.99 (trust me, if you saw it you'd agree it's a $10 part, tops). I would at least understand if they wanted to try and sign me up for another year to get the modem, like with a cell phone plan. Unfortunately, that's not the deal, even when I told them nicely that I'd be shopping around for "other providers"= Optimum Online that runs down my street.

So, it was off to Optimum we go. I called them up, explained the deal, and asked about both an internet deal, and triple play. I got the following prices: for internet only, including the modem (now a sore spot), they want $29.95 for six months, and then $49.95 thereafter. While the 15/2 speed is no slouch (when you can get it before the kiddies get home and start BitTorrenting), it's kind of expensive compared to Fios.

In for a penny, in for a pound. So, in for more, how about the triple play. I got quoted $29.95 for each of the services (phone, internet, television). Of course, they leave a few details out.

"Do I need a box," I inquired.
"Oh, yes, how many TV's?" was the reply.

I proceeded to tell them that I needed two settop boxes, one for HD and one for standard. I also wanted a DVR which runs $9.95 monthly. Each box (HD and standard are the same) was $6.50 with the remote. The internet is the same 15/2 with the included cable modem. The TV is Family iO package with "180 channels." The phone is a prioritized VoIP package which includes unlimited calling throughout the US.

So, the new total is $112.83 for all of this. Hmmm. Not quite the $29.95 each for all three services. You know, I'm in a Fios area, can you do better? I'm told that they can throw in the DVR for free, so the new total is $102.88. If I want the movie package it's an addition $10, but so far I'm passing on this as I wasn't expecting to do this for a few months.

I inquire about other fees. There's a $14.95 installation fee which they can waive. There's a $40 "number port fee" that they can't waive. I ask for it to reduced, but they won't. Ok, I go ahead, and give them the go ahead, and I make an appointment.

I call Verizon to cancel my DSL, which isn't working anyway, and all of a sudden, they can help. The nice folks now can give me modem for free, and a credit for my downtime. The only thing is that they sign me up for a monthly modem maintenance plan of 99 cents monthly. I'm tempted to go back to my original plan, and forego cable for a few more months.

So, I open this up to the peanut gallery? Was the cable deal I'm getting a good deal or not? Should I stick with Verizon a few more months?

Jonas

Update DSL

I spoke to the folks in the Verizon billing department regarding my DSL issue. They told me that a new modem would be $59.99!?!

Maybe it's just me, but that sounds like a rip off. After all, I was given the 1st modem for free when I signed up for a $14.99 plan, so it can't be an expensive part in my mind, and it feels like they're taking advantage. I also nicely told them that I was essentially keeping the copper line for the DSL, and I would be potentially canceling the whole thing if we couldn't get the DSL working for a more reasonable cost. I was told that perhaps a 3rd party modem would work, but they wouldn't recommend it.

Surprisingly, they didn't try and sell me Fios, and were fine with me heading off to call the cable company. Not so smart on the part of their marketing. Stay tuned...

Jonas

DSL Modem No Go

I've been a generally satisfied DSL customer from Verizon. While I need to have the overpriced copper phone line to get internet, the DSL (for 768/128 kbps) is a veritable bargain at $17.99 monthly and suits me fine. I've had it since 2005, and to the best of my recollection, it was only down for one night in all that time- a good uptime record my anyone's measure. Even when my phone line died, the DSL kept chugging along.

With that in mind, I present the following. I went to turn on my internet yesterday, and the modem wouldn't connect to anything. In fact, while the other lights for power and connections glowed green on the box, the modem, a Westell 6100, had an orange light for internet- clearly not good. The computer acted otherwise fine, and I had made no changes to anything, so it clearly wasn't the problem.

Hmmmm. I went to check for a dial tone on the phone line, and it was connected so that wasn't the issue. I also double checked the wires and everything was still hooked up fine. Ok, time for some outside help, and a consult of the networking kind.

I called Verizon, and I wandered through their voice menus to "Repairs" and "DSL." They did a line test, and told me it was working fine (which I already knew). The next step was to speak to someone. I figured at this point I was going to tell them that it wasn't working, and they were going to tell me that they had a network outage, or a switch down, and they were working on it or something.

Not quite. The tech support is clearly outsourced, and I had reached somewhere on the Indian subcontinent. The reps accent was very thick, and her English was much less than fluent. She painfully talked me through rebooting the router, and reconnecting the wires to no avail. Then she talked me through some DOS commands to try to manually connect the modem to Verizon which didn't work either. She also had me take the wireless router out of the mix, even though I was plugged into it with a wire anyway. After over 45 minutes of this "just one more minute," and "thank you for providing this information," the two key American phrases she had mastered, we were no further along, and I had somewhere I needed to be, so I thanked her, and told them I'd call back when I could work on this further.

After dinner, I gave it another shot. This time I reached the Philippines, and guys English was quite fluent with much less of an accent. Yay! At least now I could focus on fixing the connection, and not repeating everything four times. After a few minutes of me explaining what had gone on before, him reviewing the notes of my previous encounter, an on hold consult with a network specialist, and my modem was pronounced dead. Ok, now what?

Here's the frustrating part. I was told I needed to contact billing, and they would figure out how to get me another modem. I was connected to them at 7:55 pm, but they close at 8, and they didn't pick up the phone. Clearly mediocre service.

I'm wondering how this will go at this point. If I have to buy another modem, I'll probably cancel the service, and try with something else. The original Westell 6100 was a piece of junk, and I was surprised it lasted as long as it did. The ideal would be if I could just bring it to a Verizon store, and they could swap me out, and hopefully charge me a nominal fee for a refurb.

Stay tuned, Verizon billing opens in 40 minutes or so...

Jonas

NudgeCast 4/7/08

Click to Play

Here's this week's lineup: thoughts on the wireless spectrum auction, Verizon, my rant of the week, and incredibly useful site: bighugelabs.

TechNudge Live

Verizon's Copper Showing Patina of Age

Verizon has been very focused on deploying Fios, their fiber to the home offering for the last several years. Actually, they bet the farm on this new technology, after spending tons of green on the infrastructure to make it possible to compete with the cable companies right where they live. Overall, they're doing ok on signing up folks, although there have been plenty of unsatisfied customers due to billing issues and lack of customer support.

However, Fios is only available in a minority of communities to date. That means that the backbone of their network is still copper, much of it not aging gracefully. Almost a year ago, after my own experience, it became clear to me that Verizon's copper network was being neglected, and like an uncle without an inheritance, was being parked in the nearest public nursing home wearing a c'est le vie t-shirt. Now it's being confirmed that the problem isn't limited to my area:

While we all love that Verizon is focusing their attention on deploying fiber to the home, that attention hasn't been without cost. The last few years have seen a growing number of allegations that the telco is neglecting their DSL & landline infrastructure to focus on getting into the more lucrative TV business. Union workers say they aren't getting the tools and resources they need to support DSL & landline customers effectively.

My buddy a few towns over also is having similar issues. His phone has been out several times in the last few months. Each time it goes down, it takes too long to get it fixed, and there's still static on the line. Verizon's answer is to just sell them on fiber, but given the current economy, many folks are not eager to take on new expenses, and they are forced to put up with "mostly working."

I think it's a shame if Verizon is letting their entire copper phone network fall into disrepair. Is it just a marketing ploy to push folks to Fios? Could it backfire and cause just as many to go into cable phone and alternative VoIP offerings like Vonage? Will there be a backlash from consumers that fed up with a nonworking Verizon copper phone line won't give Fios a fair chance and flock to anything else? Until Verizon can roll fiber out to all, they should toss a few bucks into keeping their existing network up to par.

Jonas

Great Product, Poor Customer Service

It's always frustrating for a consumer to see a great product marred by a lackluster (or even worse) customer service experience. However, this scenario is all too common as companies continue to not make customer service a priority.

From the consumer's standpoint, it's a bit of a no brainer. After all, why spend so much on advertising and promotions, and then scrimp on providing good service to your loyal customers? I'll never figure it out, but when I have a problem, day or night, I expect to be able to speak to them, and they should speak clear English. They also should be educated and empowered to handle the problem.

It's easy to see that Verizon's Fios offering is a key technology that is keeping the cable execs up at night. With fiber directly to the home, and the ability to add bandwidth faster than the competition, it's no wonder that the phone company jumped into the number 10 cable provider nationally, even though this didn't exist before 2005. While this is no small feat, I'm completely confused and dismayed how they continue to screw up the customer service end of things. This today out of Florida:

Sam Miller came so close to tossing his Verizon cable TV box to the curb outside.

After signing up in November for Verizon's $99 a month deal for FiOS cable TV, Internet and phone service, Verizon was still sending him bills for $130 or more. He called to complain each month, but eventually his bill was stacked with $265 in extra fees.

One time he called Verizon, "they told me we didn't have an account. I told them they could pick up their stuff at the curb," Miller said. By calling random phone numbers at Verizon, he eventually found a helpful marketing clerk in a branch office to untangle his bill. He still hasn't gotten the free TV for signing up — that's going to take months.

"The TV picture reception is noticeably better," Miller said. "It just seems like they grew so fast they could not keep up with customer demands."

Unfortunately for Verizon, Miller is not alone in having complaints.

Yeah, it's stuff like this that give you pause. I'm still trying to figure out why they keep advertising a $95 monthly deal for triple play (it varies by market up to $105), when it doesn't include any set top boxes so it's hardly accurate. They don't sell internet, and then rent me a modem every month, do they? This initial offer and then the jack up is a type of bait and switch that confuses less tech savvy consumers.

Customers have also been very frustrated by the limited hours that the service department are open. When the TV is out before the big game on the weekend, do you want to wait until Monday to speak to someone? At time, Verizon acts like the old phone monopoly that could get away with that type of thing, and not the major communication provider they're turning into.

Is there a solution here? I don't really think so. Just don't be so disappointed if Fios is not in your area yet, and realize that while the fiber is great, the entire experience is nothing to write home about. Hopefully Verizon will get on the ball and eliminate these kinds of complaints before they run the fiber to your neck of the woods.

Jonas

Verizon Won, Now What?

With the coming end of analog television, an historic opportunity was created. The soon to be vacated portion of VHF television spectrum, popularly known as VHF was to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. In case you haven't noticed, VHF signals are particularly adept at penetrating walls and other obstacles.

It was widely hoped that this would help create a so called "third broadband" offering to the home, adding to cable and telephone company offerings. This would be especially vital in rural areas to deliver broadband everywhere (or at least to areas that fiber doesn't run to). Many also speculated that Google would pursue this as some type of nationwide munifi project with an open handheld device to access this (undoubtedly with the only search engine set to Google). Last night we learned there was a winner, and today we learn that the biggest prize went to Verizon.

While it was hardly a secret that Verizon was interested in this, I certainly wasn't rooting for them. For starters, are they really going to build a legitimate alternative to fiber to the home, when they've already overinvested in Fios? I doub it.

Verizon also has a very hefty wireless division. Ditto for the open handset model that would operate on the new frequency. Also, with their wireless broadband offerings, charging $40 for a mere 50 megs of data, I'm not thinking that we'll see a real alternative broadband offering here.

So, just what is Verizon going to do with over 9 billion of soon to be vacated wireless spectrum? I'm not really sure, but I'm not expecting to see any real competition for mobile broadband, fixed broadband, or wireless anytime soon. I only hope that I'm wrong on this one, because our nation is behind on broadband, I hope we haven't squandered yet another opportunity. Then again, maybe things will be more open than I expect.

Jonas

My Goal Is To Provide Outstanding Service...

Have you called for some tech support lately? In the last year, I've spoken to both Verizon and T-Mobile a handful of times. I can't say the reps are awful at either place, but I wasn't terribly impressed either. All too often I felt like they were reading from some script that went on and on, but were only cursorily interested in assisting me with my particular problem.

I've called T-Mobile enough times that I've got their script down. It goes something like this:

-After they get your name, they use it as often as possible.

-After they listen to the problem they try to empathize and understand how difficult experiencing a problem with the phone can be.

-Then they tell me a personal story about how they use their phone to keep in touch and how important it is to them.

-They take down the problem.

-They promise to follow up, and tell me they will call back within a few days.

-They try and sell me something else (HotSpot at Home is popular these days).

-They ask if they can help with anything else.

-They wish me a good day.

I'm sure some psychologist consultant to the company devised this script. I have some issues with it though. For starters, while it may be nice how you use your phone, and it may reinforce my need for a phone, but it just wastes time to getting my phone working again. Also, when they take down the problem, they often simplify it. Finally, I've yet to have any of them actually call me back to follow up on anything.

While these companies put tons of effort into monitoring their call centers, I wish they would put half of that into actually assisting the customer, and resolving an issue. For the record T-Mobile, after too may interactions, you still can't figure out why my phone won't roam.

Hear more about what goes on in a Verizon Customer Service Center here.

--Jonas

Pricey Landline....

Month after month my Verizon phone bill shows up in the mailbox. You may recall that I have both telephone service with them, and DSL internet. While I'm generally satisfied with my internet hookup (hard to beat 768/128 for a broadband bargain $17.99 monthly), I always feel like I'm overpaying on the phone portion of the bill.

The phone, on the other hand, is just under $25 for a traditional phone service. You know, the ol' fashioned copper lines that many have gotten away from. I generally don't make that many calls in a month as I use my cell phone on nights & weekends, and for any long distance or regional calling. The landline is really more for incoming calls, and God forbid, for 911.

When I look at the $25 charge, and the 6 calls that I made on the line a month, and realize that it's close to $4 a call, it starts to become rather silly, and clearly there should be a better way.

When folks think about VoIP, the name that instantly comes to mind is Vonage. There $25 plan gives an all-you-can-eat, err, I mean talk, approach to phone service. While it works out to more than what I'm paying after taxes, there's still something attractive about it, and represents a better value. I recently learned that folks are getting the service for even less which could force my hand (like $14.99 monthly before taxes). The other stumbling block is that my DSL modem is downstairs, and my base phone with answering machine is upstairs. Recall that the Vonage box needs to plugged into the phone and the internet. While I'm not enthusiastic about running my own Cat 5e cable, I'm pretty sure a quality powerline network adapter could bridge this gap.

Yesterday, Bill posted about a new service from T-Mobile, my dreaded cell phone company. It's called the Talk Forever Home Phone. For customers with existing plans of greater than $39 monthly, which I fit into, for a mere $10 a month, they offer an all-you-can-talk phone plan. Sweet! Unfortunately, it's in limited areas (and not by me yet), but while I've been unenthusiastic about their Hot Spot At Home plan (special phones, new router, and mediocre service), this new plan did get my interest. True, I still have the issue about the network box, but for such a low monthly rate, and the ability to keep my home phone number, it could be worth the effort.

The one stumbling block in all of this is that any of these new services rely on a fast internet connection. With a DSL upload speed of 128 (kbps) I'm not sure that I'll be able to both surf and use the phone simultaneously, so this is going backwards to the days of dialup. Not to mention that my DSL is tied to my landline account, and I'm not getting DSL without the phone (smart phone company folks).

I think at this point, the best thing to do is to wait for my phone contract to expire in a few months (begrudingly paying for the overpriced copper in the meantime). Then I can get Fios, which I believe is 10/2 mbps in my area for $39.99. Then depending on the triple play offer, I'll either go with "Fios Phone" or a Vonage service.

It seems to me that at this point, while phone service used to be the star of the show, it's become a secondary player to the internet service, and used mostly for retaining customers.

Forced Upgrade?

Let's face it, no one likes to be forced to do anything. After I've researched something to death, and gone through the effort to get something working, there are plenty of times I'd like to leave well enough alone.

I recently spotted this article on Broadband Reports that mentions that they're going to be forcing Verizon DSL customers to upgrade to the Fios offering. It leaves me rather annoyed.

I am in a Fios neighborhood, but I simply can't justify the cost. I currently have the slower DSL (768/256), and a regular phone plan. Together they run me less than $45 a month (with all of the ridiculous phone taxes), as I use my cell phone for most of the outgoing calls. The DSL is $17.99 monthly; it was $14.99 for the first year, and it generally works just fine, with an occasional hiccup, or two.

As we've all figured out, the copper phone wires of years ago are not aging gracefully, and Verizon has bet the farm on fiber optics, marketed as Fios. At least in my area, it's a jump in price to around $65 a month for phone and internet (I'm not sure if it includes the taxes; it may not). True, it's faster, but I can already stream video, and my WiFi isn't getting any faster, so it's fast enough for the time being. I'm just not sure what the $20 a month would get me, and it would add up to almost $250 at the end of the year!

When I originally tried to sign up for Verizon DSL, I practically had to beg them, and then threaten them, to get it. I kept saying that I would only get Fios if it was comparatively priced, and they finally acquiesced after I wore the Fios rep down, and mentioned that I would be exploring "other options." I guess a DSL customer was still better than no customer to them, although that may be changing.

While I didn't get any email from Verizon yet, I really don't want to go through this again. While the article doesn't mention it, if fiber cable is cheaper to maintain, then shouldn't the cost savings passed along to the consumer? I think they should have a "bargain Fios" offer that could offer slower speeds for less dough. If they're going to force me to upgrade for their convenience, and their cost savings, why should I have to pay more for it?

While I doubt we'll ever see Fios internet at DSL speed for under $20 monthly, it would be a compelling offering, and get their fiber service in more homes. And that might just be good business in the end.

--Jonas

Triple Play

With the deregulation of the telephone industry, now we traded the monopoly for a duopoly. In many areas, now the phone company sells in addition to phone services, television. Also, the cable monolith is branching out from TV to your phone. As they both already also provide internet broadband access, they now package their services into a phone, internet, and TV combo, and call it "triple play" with supposedly one low monthly fee (although in my opinion, it should be a little less).

In my area, the offerings are Verizon Fios for $95, or Optimum for $99. While at first it appears a good deal, when I remember that my phone bill and internet access are under $45 a month, and I don't watch that much TV, I stick with what I currently have which is less than half price.

I've thought about changing the phone to a VoIP provider, such as Vonage. For the same amount of money per month on the phone end of things, I can have unlimited calling. There are three deal breakers though. The first is that I'm not sure how I would physically connect my phone to the internet without pulling Ethernet cable throughout the house. My router and DSL modem is in the basement, while my phone lines are upstairs. This is not the simple plug and play that an apartment dweller can take advantage of. The next issue is that my DSL is not that fat of a data connection (hence the affordable price), and while fine for surfing, it may not do so well with voice data and simultaneous surfing, so that's not good. The final problem (maybe I should have mentioned this first), is that if I cancel my phone service, I can't keep my DSL. Yup, those phone company bean counters are no dummies, and the DSL requires a phone account with them.

So, up to now, I've kept the status quo, not triple played anything, and been on the lookout for a new offering as this is a dynamic area. I heard that Direct TV, those makers of that mini satellite dish, were feeling left out of combo services, and expanding their offerings. Hmmm. I head on over to their website, and take a look. Turns out those satellite endowed folks are teamed up with Verizon in my area, and they can sell me both satellite TV (Choice Extra Package, 185 channels), and my same DSL for $55/month (it would go up a few dollars at the end of the year as the $14.99/month goes up to $17.99/month). This would then allow me to use Vonage as a telephone service, and the total would be around $80/month. Can I really put together my own triple play for less?

Not so fast! After reading the fine print, this is only for "new" Verizon DSL customers. So they want me to cancel the service to sign up for it again? For all of the deregulation, I'm still seeing too many restrictions on all of this. At least for now, I guess, once again, I'll stick with what I've got.

--Jonas

The 2nd Loneliest Repairman

Over the last weekend, I had a disconnect from the telephone grid. I get both my internet and my telephone from Verizon, but alas, I'm getting ahead of myself, so let me back up and start again.

I was doing some work in my basement where my DSL modem and router are located. I had to move them in order to do some painting. Unfortunately, things got a little pulled as the wires didn't quite reach, but nothing appeared to pull out in the end. The next day, I noticed that I had no phone service. Curiously, the DSL still worked just fine. I went around and checked all the connections, and both the cordless, and the "non-cordless" phone had no dial tone, couldn't dial out, and were otherwise useless. My neighbors are on the newer fiberoptic (FIOS) network, and experienced no outage.

At first, I assumed that it had to be related to the router relocation even though it was only about two feet in the end. I called the phone company and requested a service call. They tested the line, and it was indeterminate- it could be in the house, or further up the line- basically no help. Of course, it was Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, and no one was coming until the Tuesday. While it was refreshing to not have the phone ringing so much, this got real old quickly. Thankfully the cell phone kept me in touch.

I didn't give much hope of getting back connected too soon. Even for a $91 service call if the problem was inside, my "appointment" covered the whole day, and not any specific time. I figured the tech would show up around 4 pm or so.

I was pleasantly surprised when the bucket truck pulled up at 8:30 am on Tuesday morning. He went right to work. I went outside to check on him only to see the truck driving away. I still had no dial tone, so I was wondering if this was break time already. After around 45 minutes he returned, and explained that there was a break in the cable on the main street. Needless to say, it had nothing to do with me moving the router even though I had fixated on that. It turns out that the DSL signal because it travels at a higher frequency than phone can jump over small breaks in the wire that stop the telephone completely, explaining my service enigma.

The tech seemed real excited to have something to fix. He told me he was a "dinosaur" as the network had gone fiberoptic in my area. He has too old to retrain, according to the company, and too young to retire. Therefore, he was more than happy to have some old fashioned copper wires to repair! Next to that Maytag guy, the Verizon copper tech may be the 2nd loneliest guy out there.

In the middle of this, I thought that perhaps I should upgrade to FIOS. However, now that I'm reconnected, things are working fine again, and I think I'll leave well enough alone for now.

--Jonas

BTW: I pay only $17.99 + fees for DSL now, and FIOS Internet starts at $39.99 + fees even with a one year commitment. Yeah it's faster, but I can already stream video ok, so I hardly see the need unless I want to download some more Linux distros...