1 edit | While roaming, need a warning symbol While roaming off of home territory, some cellphone users need a graphic symbol to remind them to check their phone's data plan. Maybe using these would let people know they are running up a big bill:
And the lawyer had a somewhat good idea, but in this particular case it would have failed anyway:
»www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.···ll.phtml
She said: "…service providers also have a responsibility. It would be better if subscribers were given a monthly maximum spend so they could be notified if they had breached it, rather than only finding out when the bill arrives". Of course downloading a 2 hr movie would run the bill up so fast that the system to monitor overages would have probably failed to stop it before the bill was already too high.
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 mark470eh?Premium
join:2002-01-09
Hooksett, NH | the carriers are often unclear about the true cost of services
in the service agreement and advertisements or the sales reps have no clue.
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my heart belongs to a canadian, she is the best. |
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 RobIn Deo speramus, God Bless the USAPremium
join:2001-08-25
Kendall, FL
kudos:2
1 edit | reply to fAcEtIOUs
said by fAcEtIOUs:While roaming off of home territory, some cellphone users need a graphic symbol to remind them to check their phone's data plan. Maybe using these would let people know they are running up a big bill: ha. Why would carriers warn customers that they may be charged EXTRA for a service that is spelled out clearly in their agreement and terms of service? That would be corporate suicide.
That's like if AT&T Wireless would warn customers that they are going over their allocated minutes and will be charged a flat rate of xx per minute.
Neva gonna happen! |
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 SteveI know your IP addressConsultant
join:2001-03-10
Yorba Linda, CA
kudos:5 | said by Rob: ha. Why would carriers warn customers that they may be charged EXTRA for a service that is spelled out clearly in their agreement and terms of service? That would be corporate suicide. No, that would be Good Credit Management |
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RobIn Deo speramus, God Bless the USAPremium
join:2001-08-25
Kendall, FL
kudos:2 | said by Steve:said by Rob: ha. Why would carriers warn customers that they may be charged EXTRA for a service that is spelled out clearly in their agreement and terms of service? That would be corporate suicide. Good Credit Management Oxymoron alert! |
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 KrKHeavy Artillery For The Little GuyPremium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK | reply to Steve
It would also be good customer service.
Oh wait. Maybe it really *is* an oxymoron! |
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 C0deZer0Oc'D To Rhythm And PolicePremium
join:2001-10-03
Davenport, FL | reply to Rob
Except it never really is clearly spelled out in the agreements you get, unless you can somehow read 2pt monospace type written on a grain of rice as "clear".
That being said, I agree that providers would never do such a thing without the contract being modified to support such a thing; and good luck getting any such modification past the suits. |
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 RARPSL
join:1999-12-08
Suffern, NY | reply to fAcEtIOUs
said by fAcEtIOUs:And the lawyer had a somewhat good idea, but in this particular case it would have failed anyway: » www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.···ll.phtmlShe said: "…service providers also have a responsibility. It would be better if subscribers were given a monthly maximum spend so they could be notified if they had breached it, rather than only finding out when the bill arrives". Of course downloading a 2 hr movie would run the bill up so fast that the system to monitor overages would have probably failed to stop it before the bill was already too high. True but the system could have done the lock down AFTER that download was done. Also the article is unclear on if the download was one episode or the full season. If the latter then the lock down could have been done at an episode boundary. |
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 CoronaIt's cool, I'm takin it backPremium
join:2000-03-14
Dallas, TX
 ·AT&T U-Verse
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said by fAcEtIOUs:...the lawyer had a somewhat good idea, but in this particular case it would have failed anyway: » www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.···ll.phtmlShe said: "…service providers also have a responsibility. It would be better if subscribers were given a monthly maximum spend so they could be notified if they had breached it, rather than only finding out when the bill arrives". They have that already, it's called prepay. |
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quatrixPremium
join:2005-02-11
Davie, FL
kudos:2 | reply to KrK
said by KrK:It would also be good customer service. Oh wait. Maybe it really *is* an oxymoron! Someone here is an oxymoron. Do you think any business's "customer service" is for the customer's benefit? A company only provides service to the extent that they see it creating more profit (as it should be). |
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KrKHeavy Artillery For The Little GuyPremium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK Reviews:
 ·AT&T DSL Service
| It's for the business's benefit in an indirect way. It's to help customers so they will keep giving you money.
Unfortunately, some companies feel they shouldn't have to provide hardly any service (let alone customer service) and try to use legal trickery (for example, long term contracts) to keep people locked into paying.
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"Regulatory capitalism is when companies invest in lawyers, lobbyists, and politicians, instead of plant, people, and customer service." - former FCC Chairman William Kennard (A real FCC Chairman, unlike the current Corporate Spokesperson in the job!) |
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SteveI know your IP addressConsultant
join:2001-03-10
Yorba Linda, CA
kudos:5 | reply to quatrix
said by quatrix:Someone here is an oxymoron. Oh yes, I agree. A company only provides service to the extent that they see it creating more profit (as it should be). Yes indeed, and by using a good credit policy that prevents you from giving away free product because a customer doesn't know the billing rules, everybody wins.
That customer may not care for the surprisingly high data charges, but it's a lot better to get notification early than to just get a big surprise at the end of a month. If a customer normally does $50/month in usage, but this month they have $500 by the 4th day of the month, something is up.
Visa has credit limits, why not the phone company?
Steve
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Stephen J. Friedl | Unix Wizard | Microsoft Security MVP | Tustin, California USA | my web site |
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| Visa may have credit limits, but increasingly many issuers now allow customers to go over the limit and then charge them a fee for exceeding their limit. They see this as yet another way to fleece the customer.
Most people who unwittingly rack up overage charges likely rack up small amounts they can afford to pay and are not going to go to the trouble of fighting it. The bean counters have probably figured out that they make more money absorbing am occasional loss than giving up revenue from the thousands of customers that go over the limit just a little. |
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 dnoyeBFerrous Phallus
join:2000-10-09
Southfield, MI | reply to fAcEtIOUs
This is very true. I was checking tmobile the other day and noticed they are now offering "alerts." I thought that was great and started to look for the alert to set when my bill exceeds a certain amount.
No such luck. They only offer "alerts" for stuff like when you get an email or other completely unnecessary things.
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dnoyeB
"Then said I, Wisdom [is] better than strength: nevertheless the poor man's wisdom [is] despised, and his words are not heard. " Ecclesiastes 9:16
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