O Canada! > Canadian > Rogers > Rogers shutting down Portable Internet service

Rogers shutting down Portable Internet service

Has anyone received this letter? If so, can you blank out your name and post a copy?

reply to abitbent
Bad link:

»www.digitalhome.ca/2011/12/roger···service/

According to the article, someone using 20GB of service would see their bill jump from $44.99 (Which allow for 30GB) to about $250.00. OUCH. I suppose if you never download too much music and just some e-mails and attachments, you're fine. Good luck, however, if you have any service packs for Windows, Linux or OS X.

So was the problem that it wasn't a good seller? Or is this purely greed motivated? Will Bell be offering this now? Maybe this is some sort of agreement that Bell and Rogers had due to the Maple Leafs deal?
--
If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough. - Albert Einstein

reply to abitbent
Hrmph. I've got some family using this... I guess I can expect to be asked for suggestions of alternatives at Christmas...

Well, the dream of rural living is now squashed. It was our only decent option.

We used the Portable Internet -- our only reasonable option -- for $50 per month to do about 15-20 gigs of activity, max. Now, we'll have to pay about $110 for that same volume, plus risk more outlay for the occasional "overage."

Pure cash-grab.

Good-bye Rogers. I'm taking all my services, worth $5000 per year, away. There is no good reason to discontinue this service, other than greed. Greedy buggers. $5K per year for you and my puny needs is *enough*

Another thing..$5,000/year to Rogers and if $600 (12 x $50/mo ) is for internet..what is the other $4,400 for?
Curious.

reply to mlerner

reply to abitbent
Hi all, Chris at Rogers here. Portable Internet has been a good solution for customers who have historically not had access to high speed connectivity. Now there are better solutions available.

Rogers is committed to doing what’s best for customers and intends to offer the smoothest transition possible. We are offering our customers a replacement service – either a free Rocket Hub or Rogers Hi-Speed Internet where available. The cost of the replacement service will depend the plan the customer selects.

The replacement services will offer the following benefits to customers:
• Speed increase: The speed of the Rocket Hub will be significantly faster than the current product – up to 7.2 Mbps or up to 21 Mbps depending on your choice of plan vs. 3 Mbps
• Free Hardware: Migration to the Rocket Hub will include free hardware valued at $149.99 with a two year commitment
• Wireless connectivity for up to 15 devices at once
• Flexibility to use the hub anywhere in Canada on the Rogers wireless network
• Voice services: The Rocket Hub offers voice service as well, at potentially lower rates than what customers are currently paying

We encourage customers who have questions about their portable internet service to give us a call.

Cheers,
@Rogers_Chris

reply to Rogers_Chris
Nice spin, now how about the facts...

For $45+tax/month I had a 2Mbps UNCAPPED service and you expect me to trade that in for a 7.5Mbps (not likely) 15GB service for $100/month

Grumpy42: Bell has a portable internet at 2mbps, much like the Rogers one..
»www.bell.ca/Bell_Internet/Produc···l_2_Mbps

2mbps, 10GB/month.

Fine print:
Available to new customers and current dial-up customers who subscribe to the Bundle with Rural 2 Mbps and at least one other select service; see bell.ca/bellbundle. Monthly rate is $50 (subject to change), less $5 Bundle discount. Modem purchase fee ($5/mo.) included. Usage 30 GB/mo.; $1.50/additional GB, rounded up to the next MB, $30 monthly maximum applies.

Seems MUCH cheaper than Rogers if its available in your area.

reply to Rogers_Chris
(Not a fan of Rogers - oh yes, I still remember they overcharged my sister $50 a few years ago!)

It is normal for businesses to close down product lines. There is no point in supporting 2 similar technologies... and when it comes to Wi-Max vs LTE, I think LTE is getting more traction lately.

Rayson

==========================
Grid Engine / Open Grid Scheduler
»gridscheduler.sourceforge.net/

reply to abitbent
I checked with Bell, they are dumping the wi-max service also.

Inukshuk is dead as off March 1st 2012.

Towers in Vancouver have been dropping like flies for the last year so I've known something was up for a long time.

Out of 5 towers in my area only 1 is connectable now and it's severely overloaded most of the day and night.

I made a complaint to the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunication Services [CCTS] many months ago about service and they were acting very suspicious and secretive.

No matter how much evidence I sent them about poor or non-existent service they kept closing my complaint file saying
nothing was found to be wrong.

CCTS gets their funding from the companies they are supposed
to be policing. Rogers is likely paying these guy bribes to shut
down complaints.

reply to Rayson
I agree with Grumpy42. The reality (for Chris) is that Rogers is only committed to its shareholders and couldn't care less about its customers. That's the main reason for the "OpenMedia" movement (see www.openmedia.ca). Like others on this forum, I live in rural Ontario and was so pleased when Rogers and Bell launched the Portable Internet (I was previously using Xplornet satellite). No long term contracts, no caps, no hassles (... until last Monday!)
Now that the Rogers (and Bell) are canceling the Wi-Max service and "pushing" customers again to contracted services with rediculous caps, I'm going back to Xplornet and plan to cancel our family's Rogers mobile accounts (3 in total) in Jan/2012 when the contract expires. I've also spoken to several friends and relatives this week about taking my business elsewhere and convinced four of them to switch to Teksavvy or Acanac who provide better service and offer more value. I've resigned myself to avoid dealing with either Bell or Rogers in the future even if it costs me a bit more money to use another company. The only way to effect change here is to move more business away from Rogers and Bell. Once they've lost enough revenue, they'll wake up and realize that "the customer really is king"!

reply to abitbent
I suggest the outraged from this thread read up on the thread in Canadian Broadband.

Short version of the situation is that the actual hardware platform is dying/dead. No being manufactured, developed, etc. They are turning down an obsolete platform.

reply to Rogers_Chris

reply to grumpy42
up to 15 pc useless i live alone. dont like caps. I paid cash for all my equipment. the letters contract are not how you spell free. I am leaving and talked my boss into leaving too.

reply to Rogers_Chris