The SCC’s communications division has recommended that Verizon Virginia and Verizon South pay a related fine of $17.5 million — an estimate of the sum Verizon saved by not responding quickly to customer complaints of “land line” phone outages.
telephony
Verizon Fighting To Offer Less Timely Customer Service To The Citizens Of Virginia
By 9.29.07
Man Fixes Unfixable FiOs Account Error By Playing Dumb
By 9.27.07
Last time we heard from Dan, Verizon wouldn’t give him his FiOs account number and kept charging his credit card that he told them not to charge. Now, through a mix of social engineering and knowing some tricks with the Verizon online account system, he was able to get all his problems solved. He tells us how, inside…
By 9.26.07
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Verizon edges closer to adopting IPv6, which, among other things, will allow for unique IP addresses to be assigned to all your electronic kitchen appliances. [EETimes]
Skorts Are Never Appropriate At Comcast
By 9.26.07
This is the dress code policy for Comcast call centers. It strictly forbids the use of skorts.
AT&T Stores Try To Promote iPhone Price Cut As "Manager's Special"
By 9.25.07
A reader reports that a Bellevue, WA AT&T store is trying to play it like the company-wide iPhone price drop is a “manager’s special.” When he called the regional manager, our reader was told the signs were the brainchild of the regional marketing department.
Contact Information For Directors Of Time Warner Cable, San Diego Division
By 9.25.07
Here are the company contacts, phone numbers, and email addresses for the division directors of Time Warner Cable, San Diego division. If you’re a TWC subscriber in that area with a problem and not getting any traction through regular customer service, one of these people should be able to help you.
Get AT&T Dry Loop For $23.99
By 9.25.07
Thanks to the efforts of the Illinois Citizen’s Utility Board, people all across the Midwest, Southwest California, Nevada and Connecticut, can get AT&T dry loop DSL for only $23.99 (express) or $28.99 (pro), instead of $43.99 or $48.99. But they won’t tell you this through the regular customer service line, because AT&T would really rather you have a landline along with your DSL, and pay more for the privilege. A current AT&T retention rep tells us this is the way to do the discount dry loop dance:
By 9.24.07
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Vonage customers can switch to the $14.99 Unlimited Special from the $24.99 plan by calling 1-866-243-4357, talking to Account Management Department, asking for the reduced plan, and threatening to cancel if they don’t give it you. [Hustler Money Blog]
By 9.24.07
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Pudding Media is like Skype except that it’s free, supported by the ads it displays on your computer which change based on your topics of conversation. [NYT]
Cell Service Coming To NYC Subways
By 9.20.07
The New York CIty subways are going to get cellphone service, according to the Daily News.
AT&T Promises Nationwide Naked DSL By The End Of The Year
By 9.20.07
Naked DSL, (DSL without the requirement to have a landline), will be available nationwide by the end of the year, according to statement made by AT&T to the Wall Street Journal.
Verizon's Style Book For Deploying "Can You Hear Me Now" Guy
By 9.19.07
You know the Verizon “Can you hear me now?” guy? Of course you do. Verizon has been pouring branding equity into the lil fella for years. You can’t leverage a character across a big company like that without developing a special “style guide” Verizon developed to govern how his likeness is used in various marketing campaigns. It’s quite hilarious, and a former company employee sent it to us to share with you.
Comcast's Download Cap Is 200 GB, But Only In Areas With Subpar Networks
By 9.19.07
Comcast’s download limit is 200 gigabytes, but the limit isn’t everywhere, a former Comcast employee told The Consumerist. Places where the network isn’t optimal, due to old hardware or too much traffic, like the Bay Area, will run into the limit. Places like Philadelphia will never run into the problem.
Helio's "Total Happiness Guarantee" Evidently Uses Alternative Understanding Of The English Language
By 9.18.07
Helio offers a “Total Happiness Guarantee” which says that if you don’t like their phone or service for any reason you can return it within 30 days for your money back, no questions asked. However, their customer service staff is poorly trained and could try to tell you don’t get sales tax refunded, blogs LifeClever. It’s also going to take at least four months for the refund to process, he found, along with other annoying fun plot points.
New Legislation Would Limit Wireless Contract Termination Penalties
By 9.18.07
Two advocacy groups, the Consumer Federation of America and the Consumers Unions, endorsed a bill yesterday that would limit the amount that wireless, cable, and telephone companies could charge customers for early cancellation of their contract. Specifically, it would require companies to waive cancellation fees for the first 30 days, and pro-rate any fees after the first 30 days (something Verizon already does, but no other mobile carrier that we know of).
T-Mobile Buys SunCom Wireless
By 9.17.07
If you’re one of the 1.1 million people who use SunCom Wireless, welcome to T-Mobile. According to the Wall Street Journal, T-Mobile purchased SunCom for $1.6 billion and will take over net debt of $800 million. In doing so, T-Mobile increases its subscriber base and its network capacity.
Are Bundled Packages A Threat To Privacy?
By 9.16.07
The L.A. Times read the privacy policies of several bundled service providers and found that they are feverishly monitoring their subscriber’s activities. With the ability to monitor internet, phone, and television preferences, bundled service providers are able to track nearly every aspect of their subscriber’s digital lives. While Google retains personally identifiable for less than two years, some ISPs like Time Warner cling to your data for an astounding fifteen years in order to “comply with tax and accounting requirements.” It gets worse.
There are red flags to be found in each telecom provider’s privacy policy. A close reading of Time Warner’s policy reveals:
