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Comments on news posted 2013-03-11 15:48:33: On the heels of Verizon DSL rate hikes of up to $5, AT&T is informing many DSL users they can also look forward to more expensive DSL service. ..

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chamberc
Premium Member
join:2008-08-05
Addison, TX

chamberc

Premium Member

Uh... feel free to build out your own nationwide network...

How dare they set prices for the services they sell!

Raptor
Not a Dumptruck
join:2001-10-21
London, ON

1 recommendation

Raptor

Member

Re: Uh... feel free to build out your own nationwide network...

Many try, tough to do with AT&T and others lobby the local gov't to ban such an action. Funny how that works eh?
Crookshanks
join:2008-02-04
Binghamton, NY

Crookshanks

Member

Re: Uh... feel free to build out your own nationwide network...

Many would argue that it's inappropriate for municipal government to be in the broadband business. Want to see the difference between private and municipal employees? Follow around a private garbage truck, then a public one, and watch the difference in haste between the two sets of employees.

I would take issue with lobbying to prevent private upstarts, but what's the problem if a state government deems it inappropriate for their municipalities to be in the broadband business? States set the rules for their political subdivisions, and with very few exceptions they can do whatever they want.
34764170 (banned)
join:2007-09-06
Etobicoke, ON

34764170 (banned)

Member

Re: Uh... feel free to build out your own nationwide network...

said by Crookshanks:

Many would argue that it's inappropriate for municipal government to be in the broadband business. Want to see the difference between private and municipal employees? Follow around a private garbage truck, then a public one, and watch the difference in haste between the two sets of employees.

Where I live we've had both and the privately run trucks the employees do a pretty poor job.
itguy05
join:2005-06-17
Carlisle, PA

itguy05 to Crookshanks

Member

to Crookshanks
said by Crookshanks:

Many would argue that it's inappropriate for municipal government to be in the broadband business. Want to see the difference between private and municipal employees? Follow around a private garbage truck, then a public one, and watch the difference in haste between the two sets of employees.

I think I'd rather have the municipal owned utility. We moved from a location that was serviced for a for-profit water company where we paid ~$30 a month for water. Now we are on a municipal owned system and pay ~$30 per QUARTER. Why? The municipality can't make a profit on what they sell us.

Raptor
Not a Dumptruck
join:2001-10-21
London, ON

1 recommendation

Raptor to Crookshanks

Member

to Crookshanks
The public v. private can always go either way depending on the services being offered, locale, time of year, etc.

The problem is apparent when you can see that it's a law been put into place only to serve existing business. Arguing that the law was put into place with the conviction that it will stave off yet another endless public money pit seems a bit presumptuous.

As per the inappropriateness, I understand that point and can certainly agree that there are instances where that would apply. The government is the government, or it should be anyway. If all is running well then they shouldn't have to get into a service that one would hope would be efficiently run by private enterprise. They should stick to what they do and run the municipality/state/province/etc. One could also argue that as time moves forward, the idea of internet access and it's level of use within our society is slowly moving it towards being a Utility (i.e. power, water, gas, etc.)

Ignoring other industries for a moment, I think many would agree that there are some very glaring and obvious examples in the residential broadband industry where the private lobby stomps on a muni start-up, lest they have to offer something better than $50/mo 5-mbit connections.

The very definition of capitalism by which a private business would be run by in an area where they may be the sole service provider steers them towards a model of how much cash can they pull in providing the lowest amount of service. A municipal upstart is something that local residents can agree on to pay for themselves (local democracy at work) assuming a value added proposal is put forth and it means better service and/or more cash in their pocket eventually.

Any provided public service can be thought of as another horse in the race. We can speak of bloat in the public sector all day, but it happens privately too. So I think that's a non-starter against muni broadband.
NoHereNoMo
join:2012-12-06

NoHereNoMo to Crookshanks

Member

to Crookshanks
Given the growing list of local and state government services and information provided only online, it's going to become more than just appropriate for every government entity to be in the broadband business, it's going to be essential--one way or another, even if it only means forcing "private" ISPs to provide service, to "put up or shut up" as it were.

Twaddle
@sbcglobal.net

Twaddle to Crookshanks

Anon

to Crookshanks
Where is the public sector getting their Internet services and who is supplying them and who is paying for them?
If the public has no viable Internet services then the govt can't use the internet for communication, etc and will need to provide counter space and a person to provide the informational services to the public. No state/Federal Income Tax submissions, no DMV registrations etc. Post ALL legislation in a hard copy format for public access. It's a two edged sword. If the ATT/Bell Souths and the Verizons don't want to provide needed services then they can pay through the the nose for the easements and rights of ways on public and private property and pay for land, rights of ways easements just like everyone else. After all public property should be costing them more to use as well.
rahvin112
join:2002-05-24
Sandy, UT

1 recommendation

rahvin112 to Crookshanks

Member

to Crookshanks
Those doing the arguing are often doing so without a whit of knowledge on the issue. Most people aren't old enough to remember when this country wired power and telephone into the rural areas but in almost every case it was done with a municipal coop project.

Later after the fixed capital costs were recovered the existing facilities were sold to the utility monopoly under the promise that future costs and service requirements would be regulated by the state to preserve the investment of the local community. In the process state utility regulation boards were setup and implemented service requirements and price limits. Most of these "no-muni" laws also take the step of gutting that regulation as well.

So why should a company that purchased these lines under an agreement that required service and price controls get to wave those requirements while at the same time preventing the communities from providing for themselves just like they did originally?

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
Netgear WNDR3700v2
Zoom 5341J

KrK to chamberc

Premium Member

to chamberc
Consumers, using the power of the free market, should just vote with their wallets and move to competitors who provide better services and cheaper rates, just as the Free market THEORY insists they can. That would solve these problems.

OH WAIT.....
Kamus
join:2011-01-27
El Paso, TX

Kamus to chamberc

Member

to chamberc
said by chamberc:

Uh... feel free to build out your own nationwide network...

OK, you solved the riddle, now go and have a few drinks and drive home afterwards.

SimbaSeven
I Void Warranties
join:2003-03-24
Billings, MT

SimbaSeven to chamberc

Member

to chamberc
"Uh... feel free to build out your own nationwide network..."

I would if I had a couple $b to spare.

michieru
Premium Member
join:2009-07-25
Denver, CO

1 recommendation

michieru to chamberc

Premium Member

to chamberc
I am sorry but I am sick of hearing that BS line. After all the damn subsidies and USF taxes you and I paid over the years you would think they would be the leading edge in technology but instead are the biggest joke in telecom. That line does not apply when you speak of AT&T.

David
Premium Member
join:2002-05-30
Granite City, IL

David

Premium Member

I think all prices are going up.

1.) crude oil is up, therefore gas is going up.
2.) property taxes going up
3.) income taxes going up
4.) satellite/cable providers going up

I guess the dumb question is, what isn't going up?

CaptainRR
Premium Member
join:2006-04-21
Blue Rock, OH

2 recommendations

CaptainRR

Premium Member

Re: I think all prices are going up.

Payrolls sure not going up!

Probitas
@teksavvy.com

Probitas

Anon

Re: I think all prices are going up.

Confidence in politicians and lawyers....

Faith in the economy....

Quality of service....

Jobs at home vs. overseas....

morbo
Complete Your Transaction
join:2002-01-22
00000

morbo to David

Member

to David
The difference is those are items of value. AT&T DSL is worthless trash to anyone that has a real choice between broadband providers.

This a perfect time for the U.S. to take a fresh look at the lack of broadband 'competition' and how overpriced it is compared to about every other country in the world.
HiDesert
join:2008-08-17

HiDesert

Member

Re: I think all prices are going up.

Bingo we have a winner! Very little competition here. Huge margins and you can bet allot of collusion behind closed doors. Millions of dollars in lobby to keep it that way.

David
Premium Member
join:2002-05-30
Granite City, IL

David to morbo

Premium Member

to morbo
said by morbo:

The difference is those are items of value. AT&T DSL is worthless trash to anyone that has a real choice between broadband providers.

As I heard it said once.... "One man's trash is another man's treasure...."

WHT
join:2010-03-26
Rosston, TX

1 recommendation

WHT to David

Member

to David
said by David:

I guess the dumb question is, what isn't going up?

Upstream back-haul costs.

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
Netgear WNDR3700v2
Zoom 5341J

KrK to David

Premium Member

to David
said by David:

I guess the dumb question is, what isn't going up?

PAY. Standard of living. Hope for the future!

And the CPI is a complete lie. Anyone who believes inflation is 1% isn't living in the real world.
Kamus
join:2011-01-27
El Paso, TX

Kamus

Member

Re: I think all prices are going up.

said by KrK:

said by David:

I guess the dumb question is, what isn't going up?

PAY. Standard of living. Hope for the future!

And the CPI is a complete lie. Anyone who believes inflation is 1% isn't living in the real world.

LOL, real world? try living in Mexico, that will feel very real to you then. We've had 3 zeroes taken from our currency years ago, and it's allready catching up again.

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK

KrK

Premium Member

Re: I think all prices are going up.

I think that's kind of the point, isn't it? The plan isn't SUPPOSED to be to race backwards, but that's exactly what's happening.

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium Member
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs

N3OGH

Premium Member

Re: I think all prices are going up.

The reality is in today's world, the little guy is fucked. If you have to go to work in the morning to make a buck, you're one of the little guys.

Some of us are just more fucked than others. Agreed the CPI is bullshit. They strip the cost of food & energy out of it. The exact 2 things you can't live without and say inflation is "low".

It's all smoke & mirrors while we argue republicrat vs deomocin.

All along we end up screwed & squeezed.

Things can't go on like this much longer. The politicians are strangling the country for their own personal agendas and we pay the price...
itguy05
join:2005-06-17
Carlisle, PA

itguy05

Member

Re: I think all prices are going up.

said by N3OGH:

Things can't go on like this much longer. The politicians are strangling the country for their own personal agendas and we pay the price...

Remember - we hold the key. Get enough people to vote them out vs vote the party line and watch things change. Politics should never be a career rather something you do out of service to your country. When we stop making it a career we get back to the principals this country was founded on.
cramer
Premium Member
join:2007-04-10
Raleigh, NC
Westell 6100
Cisco PIX 501

cramer to David

Premium Member

to David
If that's the case, why has my DSL line been $41.95 for over a decade? Inflation has certainly been ongoing the whole time, yet my Bellsouth (now AT&T) rate hasn't changed -- nor has my Earthilink/TWC service, fwiw.

The thing everyone, including Karl, are missing here is the word DIRECT in that letter... he's a dry-loop, no phone service, customer.

(The the record, I've kept the DSL line only because it has a grandfathered static IP -- and no port blocks.)
Kamus
join:2011-01-27
El Paso, TX

1 edit

Kamus to David

Member

to David
said by David:

I guess the dumb question is, what isn't going up?

The bang for the buck on information technologies, where the prices are actually dropping exponentially all the time*

Like for example, People used to have to spend thousands of dollars to get 4TB of storage capacity just a few years ago. These days all people need to spend to get that kind of storage is $170.00.

It's the same story for processing speed, where just a few decades ago the processing power that fits in your pocket used to cost millions of dollars and was actually called a "super computer"
These days you only have to spend around $300.00 to have that "super computer" on your pocket, and it's around 1000~2000 times faster.

So you see, the fact that AT&T is not only raising the prices on obsolete technology is ridiculous when the technology to deliver gigabit speeds for around the same cash exists today.

* -- Unless you're a telco that is unwilling to serve customers with new technology because they can't be bothered to spend a dime on infrastructure, since they already charge you the same with their obsolete and very soon useless technology. (and then maybe they can convince you to spend exponentially more on their wireless networks, because you know, there's a spectrum crunch and bandwidth is so finite they have to have your right eye for just a little bit of it)
tivoboy
join:2004-05-10
Menlo Park, CA

tivoboy to David

Member

to David
technically crude is DOWN, gas has been running for completely different reasons. It's not related to WTI crude pricing

David
Premium Member
join:2002-05-30
Granite City, IL

David

Premium Member

Re: I think all prices are going up.

said by tivoboy:

technically crude is DOWN, gas has been running for completely different reasons. It's not related to WTI crude pricing

yea check it again, come summer. Then tell me crude prices are down. I am sure they will say it's because it's a summer blend, but recently it was said the winter blend is more expensive. So now all I know both "blends" are expensive!

buzz_4_20
join:2003-09-20
Dover, NH

buzz_4_20

Member

We'll just price-out a bunch of Loyal customers

It'll be fine for our long term plans...

Jon5
Premium Member
join:2001-01-20
Lisle, IL

1 recommendation

Jon5

Premium Member

Caps

"The user went to wireless where he'll face more heavily capped service with costlier overages"

So tiered of hearing people whine about caps. Not everyone downloads a terabyte of data every month. If you do, you either need to find and pay for a service that fits your needs or get a life.
Kamus
join:2011-01-27
El Paso, TX

Kamus

Member

Re: Caps

said by Jon5:

"The user went to wireless where he'll face more heavily capped service with costlier overages"

So tiered of hearing people whine about caps. Not everyone downloads a terabyte of data every month. If you do, you either need to find and pay for a service that fits your needs or get a life.

And not everyone uses the internet for the same boring things you do.

SimbaSeven
I Void Warranties
join:2003-03-24
Billings, MT
·StarLink

SimbaSeven to Jon5

Member

to Jon5
said by Jon5:

Not everyone downloads a terabyte of data every month. If you do, you either need to find and pay for a service that fits your needs or get a life.

Heh.. I usually transfer ~250GB of data per month. This is updates, Netflix, web services, etc.

If anyone says 10GB is enough, they're not living in reality. I'd eat that within a day (or a few hours).
tmc8080
join:2004-04-24
Brooklyn, NY

1 recommendation

tmc8080

Member

RiPOFF ALERT!

AT&T is rippping you off for 6 megabits at $51 a month!!
That in addition to caps & overages is a total ripoff! You the consumer must do something to stop this company from damaging the consumer wireline marketplace any futher!

••••
Bob61571
join:2008-08-08
Washington, IL

3 edits

Bob61571

Member

Which markets is AT&T doing this? What patterns do u see?

Which markets are seeing this, and which are not?

Does it depend on the Cableco competition? If so, which do they fight with, and which do they willingly surrender their customers to? Does AT&T have cable companies that they favor, and others that they do NOT like? Seems that when AT&T gives up, that the Cableco will make out like a bandit.

Is this an experiment in the former BellSouth areas, that will later roll out everywhere in the future?

bobjohnson
Premium Member
join:2007-02-03
Spartanburg, SC

bobjohnson

Premium Member

Re: Which markets is AT&T doing this? What patterns do u see?

Doesn't matter which market. But particularly in old BellSouth areas that don't have U-Verse, T is basically handing their customers over to other companies without much of a fight.

Chris 313
Because It's Geekier
Premium Member
join:2004-07-18
Houma, LA
·AT&T FTTP
·Comcast XFINITY

Chris 313

Premium Member

Making cable seem like a bargain...

At these prices, those idiots at the bells make cable seem like a bargain for much higher speeds. Cable should be welcoming all these refugees with open arms. Maybe even taking a poke at them like Comcast has done with their recent speed increase commercials

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK

KrK

Premium Member

Re: Making cable seem like a bargain...

Don't worry, the Cable execs will notice that too.

Que Cable internet hikes in 3....2.....1....

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

1 recommendation

IowaCowboy

Premium Member

Cable is better

Cable is better than DSL when it works. Getting them to fix things is another ball game. I've had so many problems with Comcast like getting bot notification e-mails even though I've ran antivirus software on the computers I suspect might be infected and the software said "no viruses detected".

U think its an extortion attempt to sell me signature support. If I pay to have my computer fixed, it will be at the apple store or the geek squad. Having taken college courses on computers and networking, I don't need some "technician" to read me instructions off a script (for a fee of course) for stuff I already know and I can ask for help on DSLR as well.

Their signature support is about milking consumers, I'd trust the Geek Squad or Genius Bar before I'd trust Comcast. At least Comcast is generous enough to give me free copies of Norton Internet Security for Mac with my subscription.

•••••••••••••••••
bimmerdriver
join:2010-12-10
Coquitlam, BC

bimmerdriver

Member

6 Mbps DSL for $51 NOT = 'Best Possible Internet Experience'

$51 for 6 Mbps is hardly what I would call the "best possible internet experience". What a load of crap. Maybe if it was 10 times what they are offering... Companies like this really deserve to get their a**es handed to them by real competition.

Gilitar
join:2012-02-01
Mobile, AL

Gilitar

Member

AT&T can kiss my...

I'm in the process of porting my wireless service away from AT&T right now and as soon as Mediacom becomes available I will be dropping my AT&T DSL.

I for one will never do business with AT&T again.

Twaddle
@sbcglobal.net

Twaddle

Anon

DSL pricing from ATT

Guess its a matter of if you want Internet then you have to pay the price to those who provide it. If no alternate provider is providing the service and ATT doesn't want to provide DSL services and are willing to raise prices to force people out then that's what will happen.
Internet access is NOT a right nor should we as taxpayers be required to provide Internet service to public institutions (read schools/libraries hospitals) with our tax dollars, after all the Internet is a luxury and all those bureaucrats can use alternate services already provided by tax dollars like the US mail for correspondence, hospitals can keep hard copy records and pay a courier to deliver them store them etc. and those pesky children can go to their libraries and use outdated and non- relevant books to do their research/study. Yeah the Internet access thing is a friggin' joke here in the US of A and the joke is on the tax paying citizen consumer. Our various governments aren't going to provide the taxpayer with any relief or assistance with their personal internet but by God they're going to reach into your wallet to take your money so THEY can have Internet service then tell you all the information you need/require is on the Internet but good luck finding the services for you. Don't say go to the public library for Internet service because they don't keep them open 7x24 or even 4 x 12 hours a day. If the private sector won't provide an obviously "needed" service then the government is compelled to provide it.

Eddy120876
join:2009-02-16
Bronx, NY

Eddy120876

Member

Re: DSL pricing from ATT

Again the old Rich guy slogan "why should we provide it for those that need it" i mean come down from that cloud dude and do some christian like "share the goods with those that need" oh and if you are not a christian(insert other religion here) or don't believe in anything then follow the golden rule: Do on to others like you like to be done to you" I don't care giving my taxes to fix the problems in my community,city,sate or country. You want to hear a good joke..find me a right wingers that actually care for the poor. Oh and funny thing is that every gov that is not a third world nation wants their children to have the latest tech so they can move forward no wonder we are dropping in the education level all over. Also those ideas you have post office,hospital hard copies and paying carrier are not working because theres no money for it yet with the net you can do all that guess for how much on the long run?= Free. Also want to know why those public services are not open 24/7 365..simple because theres no money for it but yet we have money for improving our military to fight every country in the world but no money for internet and better education for the poor. Oh and mind you i love the military but we need to take care of our poor,children and the elderly.
shrraga
join:2012-07-22

shrraga to Twaddle

Member

to Twaddle
Actually, the postal service is a separate entity from the government, that operates on it's own funding that is made from operating its shipping/ mailing business, however it's owned by the public (but not funded by the public, as mandated by the constitution of the united states). As it's publicly owned, congress purposefully screwed it (requiring prefunding of retirement accounts for... 70 years I believe?), in order to bankrupt it and drive all the business to the private sector (which doesn't have to prefund retirement accounts at all).

So, my point is... if all correspondence from public institutions swapped to the postal service, it would cost more (say a hospital sent 40,000 emails, that would only cost the really low internet costs... now if the hospital sent 40,000 snail mail letters that would cost $17,600 if they were paying only $0.44 for the paper, envelopes, and stamps. So, patient quality of service would vastly degrade because it would take 2 weeks to get medical records because we can't provide internet to hospitals, and tax payer shouldn't give phone lines to the hospital either, because that is a luxury too, and because the hospital doesn't have a phone line they cannot use fax machines to get medical records... So, gotta raise the cost of medical care because there is not an instant cheap method to transfer all the patient records, and long wait times.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT

BiggA

Premium Member

Just like cable

... and this is news why?
34764170 (banned)
join:2007-09-06
Etobicoke, ON

34764170 (banned)

Member

Re: Just like cable

*wooosh*

and it goes right over your head.
BiggA
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
Central CT
·Frontier FiberOp..
Asus RT-AC68

BiggA

Premium Member

Re: Just like cable

No, nothing's going over my head. This is another attempt by Karl to try and suggest that AT&T is going to just dump a bunch of DSL users, which is a blatant distortion of reality, and is not backed by any actual facts, and is illogical in the first place.

Bill Neilson
Premium Member
join:2009-07-08
Alexandria, VA

Bill Neilson

Premium Member

You would think or hope that most recieving these

letters ask where their improved service is when they get their rates hiked.
amungus
Premium Member
join:2004-11-26
America

amungus

Premium Member

no surprise

I'm not at all surprised.
This isn't really drastic, though they could stand to increase the caps on this level of service (if they're even enforcing them??)

I had 6Mbps service at a promo rate for about 6 months ($25/mo.), and being literally right next to a distribution facility (bigger than a VRAD, more like a little closet), service was perfect. They almost got me to be forced into uVerse, but I moved before they forced this.

In any case, it beats the pants off of any form of cellular connection. Not so much for a stable and consistent cable connection, but getting that "perfect" cable connection is probably less common than with DSL.

My parents are still totally screwed - neither cable, nor AT&T want to wire their stretch of road, which is serviced by both within less than half a mile. Literally a dead zone of "we don't care" even with a boatload of fiber less than 100 yards away. The caps on cellular data plans are still completely geared towards "oops, you owe us a lot more than the 5GB, haha" at their current caps.

Let's also not forget the entrenched business accounts that AT&T has. Even if the service is through a reseller, chances are good that tons of fiber is still being pumped through AT&T facilities.

The simple fact is that every ISP, no matter how big, simply must connect with AT&T. Everyone knows this. There is nothing that the home user can do either. Whether it's Verizon, AT&T, or some local outfit (that is likely MORE expensive).
Cable may be faster in lots of places, but there are still vast chunks where the service might be less stable than 6Mbps DSL. In any case, the price increase kind of sucks, but is not unexpected.

Packeteers
Premium Member
join:2005-06-18
Forest Hills, NY
Asus RT-AC3100
(Software) Asuswrt-Merlin

1 edit

Packeteers

Premium Member

Re: no surprise

i was setting up an office in an industrial zone in central NJ that was a few hundred yards from Comcast. they wanted $16,000 to light up our street, so i approached the neighbors and shared half the cost with them - contact your parent's local provisioning department, while they survey which effected neighbors may like to pony up for better service. it often pays for itself by increasing the property value as people today actively look for properties served by good ISP's.

BTW - this forced migration from copper pair ADSL to other forms of broadband is really about Union labor busting as your local CLEC is the only low voltage wired service left that still requires a Unionized labor force.
mlcarson
join:2001-09-20
Santa Maria, CA

mlcarson

Member

Nationalize it!

Maybe it's time to nationalize the phone network. Kick all of the national providers out and fund a national infrastructure that any ISP can use. That way we won't have 3-5x the infrastructure needed in urban areas and we can actually ensure that all areas of the country have one solid infrastructure for broadband and sell it at a reasonable price.

The government paid for most of the infrastructure anyway in some form.
Kearnstd
Space Elf
Premium Member
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

Kearnstd

Premium Member

Companies need to stop this Experience crap

Just buck up and take the bad PR and say you are raising the bill to make your share holders more money.

"Improving your xx Experience" has got to be one of the most overused PR lines in history.
dra6o0n
join:2011-08-15
Mississauga, ON

dra6o0n

Member

At least wireless networks compete a little in Canada...

But most of the price hikes and changes still occurs, it's just that small competition seems to exist between small wireless companies like Virgin Mobile and Koodo.

There needs to be competition on larger businesses though in order to see more changes, but because the system practically lets whoever owns the network to capitalize it entirely, that is moot.

I wonder though, it should be possible to work around that, like how Google built new lines and networks on top of what's existing, without needing to go through them.

The problem now is in other articles... Incumbents now are using the law to prevent this from happening in the US, and they also try to do this in Canada using the CRTC...

Arkansas DSL
@sbcglobal.net

Arkansas DSL

Anon

Thanks for the Hike AT&T....I'm switching TODAY

My kid watching a lot of youtube. We use it for educational videos from colleges and we watch netflix. We both have data plans on our phone as well. I get my bill and its $83 for one month of crappy DSL. AT&T goodbye, I'm switching today!

Phantasee
join:2009-08-27
Hammond, LA

Phantasee

Member

Re: Thanks for the Hike AT&T....I'm switching TODAY

I was told my a few oldschool ATT techs that ATT DSL will be gone in a few years and LTE will be taking it's place. I wonder if some other company will buy these old DSL systems and revive it.
coakl
join:2003-05-16
Sacramento, CA

coakl

Member

Switching to Sonic.net, a $15 difference in net savings

$73: cheapest AT&T land line with no features or long distance plan, plus 6 Mb DSL, plus taxes and fees.

$58: Sonic fusion land line with boatload of features and unlimited long distance, plus 20 Mb ADSL2+, taxes and fees included.
aabaaf
join:2011-12-09
Wheaton, IL

aabaaf

Member

Re: Switching to Sonic.net, a $15 difference in net savings

Sonic.net, XYZ.net etc.......... Are all the COSTCO's and Sams Clubs of the ISP. They buy large chunk of data, and phone lines for a discount from AT&T, and then pass that discount on to you. Just like COSTCO does, you can buy 1 can of dog food at your local store for $2.95, or 12 cans at COSTCO for $18. Yes, these deals are not everywhere, but they are in lots of places. One big problem with them is, tech support. Your DSL goes down you call Sonic.net tech support, they go through the usual steps and then say well we can't help you, you need to call AT&T, since they actually "own" your line. You call AT&T, spend 40 mins with a CSR, with them trying to pull up your account, because you don't have a AT&T account number you have a Sonic.net account. Then you get the blame game back & forth, well we, AT&T, checked our lines and everything is fine call Sonic.net. But I just spoke with Sonic.net. Trust me been there done that, it's a big headache, yes saving money and all, just when it comes time for tech support, keep your fingers crossed for knowledgeable support reps on both sides.

David
Premium Member
join:2002-05-30
Granite City, IL

David

Premium Member

Re: Switching to Sonic.net, a $15 difference in net savings

If they do it correctly your ISP should be calling AT&T, not you! AT&T won't have any information on you because their customer is sonic.net, xyz.net, etc. So if your ISP is telling you to call AT&T, I would turn right around and ask them "Does this mean I give them my monthly $$?" "Perhaps I should call them, thanks for that!!"

Typically they change their tune real quick!

TheTechGuru
join:2004-03-25
TEXAS

1 edit

TheTechGuru

Member

$51 for 6mbps/768kbps DSL vs. $56/mo for 12mbps/1mbps cable

$51 for 6mbps/768kbps DSL vs. $56/mo for 12mbps/1mbps cable. I'm currently paying $67/mo for 24mbps/2mbps cable.

With prices like this, we're definantly going to need the "Internet Lifeline" program to take off with all ISP's to be able to provide basic $9.95 to $19.95/mo internet to all households.

DSL used to be cheaper than cable, with the new prices, cable is now cheaper. One cable co has 30mbps/4mbps for $29.99/mo for a year and even after the year it's still cheaper than AT&T's 6mbps DSL.
Lmck51
join:2005-02-10
Spartanburg, SC

Lmck51

Member

Re: $51 for 6mbps/768kbps DSL vs. $56/mo for 12mbps/1mbps cable

I was Paying $32 and Now $36 for DSL Ultimate i`m thinking about switch phone and internet to charter. where i can get phone and internet for $49.00 from charter. and it seem like ever month my att phone bill increase.
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