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LULZaddict
PEBKAC
join:2004-03-08

LULZaddict to nitzan

Member

to nitzan

Re: [Future9] Introducing Future 5 - unlimited* service for $5/mo ($60/year).

can't get the site to work... at all, tried different browsers, even different IP's.

If a company can't get the basics down, I won't be trusting them with my CC info.

kerstuf
join:2014-02-12
Tellico Plains, TN

kerstuf

Member

Having no problems getting in with Opera 20, FF28 or IE11.

LULZaddict
PEBKAC
join:2004-03-08

LULZaddict

Member

Tried Chrome, Epic Privacy Browser, Firefox, SRWare Iron and 4 different US based IP's from my VPN.
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1 to LULZaddict

Premium Member

to LULZaddict
said by LULZaddict:

can't get the site to work... at all, tried different browsers, even different IP's.

Please forgive a possibly silly question:

You [are] going to »www.future-nine.com/ and then clicking on signup?

What is happening, exactly?

LULZaddict
PEBKAC
join:2004-03-08

LULZaddict

Member

thx for the offer to help. I've decided to go with voip.ms though.
mike8675309
join:2009-01-05
Farmington, MN

mike8675309 to LULZaddict

Member

to LULZaddict
I can get there no problem. Try a tracert to see if you can even get there. My tracert to future-nine.com takes 9 hops jacking around inside charter.com routers before it makes it out and then gets stuck for 5 hops inside fplfn.net routers before it hits their site.
nitzan
Premium Member
join:2008-02-27

nitzan to LULZaddict

Premium Member

to LULZaddict
said by LULZaddict:

Tried Chrome, Epic Privacy Browser, Firefox, SRWare Iron and 4 different US based IP's from my VPN.

Sounds like a problem with your VPN. Why not just go to the site directly from your own IP address?

thx for the offer to help. I've decided to go with voip.ms though.

Did you actually get it to work? last I've seen voip.ms are super-strict about accounts created via VPN. They'll probably make you send a copy of your credit card and other such nonsense.
astan
join:2005-06-15
Santa Monica, CA

astan to nitzan

Member

to nitzan
I was able to just use the Obi Dashboard Device Configuration

Click on settings gear for SP1 or SP2
Click on Next under OBiTALK Compatible Service Providers
Click on Accept in the Emergency Service Calls
Click on Generic Service Provider
In the Configurations Name box change "Generic Service Provider" to "Future 5"
In the Service Provider Proxy Server box put- incoming.future-nine.com
In User Name box put in your 8 digit Future User number
Put in your password
If you want this to be the primary line for outgoing calls, check the box

then Click on Submit
nitzan
Premium Member
join:2008-02-27

nitzan

Premium Member

Keep in mind this will probably not set some required parameters like keep alive and digit map. If you have trouble making or receiving calls make sure those are set the way I posted. Thanks!
Xee
join:2005-02-22
USA

Xee to nitzan

Member

to nitzan
Well we've been using our cellphones with apps with mixed results so far (quality isn't the best) but today our actual phone finally arrived, a Panasonic KX-TG6511B. However, after we charged it and tried to make a call we just got a 403 "rejected" message. I did some googling and it looks like this is has to do with a "registration" error.

Anyone have an idea on what we need to do to fix it? I tried poking around in the Obi100 settings but couldn't find anything. Thanks in advance.
nitzan
Premium Member
join:2008-02-27

nitzan

Premium Member

403 is typically wrong username and password- make sure you're using the ones from the SIP INFO screen - not the same as your web login.
Xee
join:2005-02-22
USA

1 edit

Xee

Member

Got it. Strange, I was still able to make calls over my cell. Who knows.

Anyway I made my first call with the new phone and the person I talked to said the connection was perfect, so apparently it was the just the crappy apps the entire time.

Thanks for all the help!
nitzan
Premium Member
join:2008-02-27

nitzan

Premium Member

Glad to hear. I haven't had great experience with apps in general either, but yes- via an adapter quality is much much better.
astan
join:2005-06-15
Santa Monica, CA

astan to nitzan

Member

to nitzan
This is not true, you cut me off after 2 months and required another $15 to get the third month of service
said by nitzan:

To accommodate GV refugees, we've decided to extend the promos further - until the end of April the following promotions apply:
1. You can sign up on a monthly basis - no need to prepay the whole year - $15 will get you started and pay for 3 months of service.
2. No porting fee for anyone porting their number in from Google Voice.
3. Reduced porting fee ($10) for everybody else.

P.S. I want to make it clear since I've seen the question asked on another forum - the monthly price ($5/mo) is fixed - it does not expire and will never go up.

nitzan
Premium Member
join:2008-02-27

nitzan

Premium Member

said by astan:

This is not true, you cut me off after 2 months and required another $15 to get the third month of service

People like you are ruining it for everyone else. Because of you we seriously considered just switching back to the yearly plan and disallowing the 3-months-at-a-time promo. You should be proud of yourself - you sure showed us!

For the record: as we told this guy when he decided to wage war on this policy - you are required to maintain a positive balance in your account to keep service active, which means effectively service will cost $15 initially, another $15 two months later, and then another $15 every 3 months. This beats every other similarly-priced plans I know of (Anveo/Phone Power/Vestalink) as they all require you to commit to a year in advance which we don't.

I'm glad other people appreciate what we're trying to do here. I won't let this one guy ruin it for everyone else. Thank you!

hmishra
Premium Member
join:2006-01-04
Flower Mound, TX

hmishra

Premium Member

Nitzan,

Thank you for not letting some of your experiences with customers influence your overall model.

In fact, for everyone else following this thread, I will post an excerpt of my redacted email communication with F9 support where in they expressly pointed out that I did not need to deposit $60 to begin service even though I was implicitly willing to do that.

Hello,

Caller ID- done.

You do not need to deposit $60- the Future 5 plan is available as a monthly plan so $15 would be enough to start. The plan includes
2000 outgoing minutes a month, minutes beyond that will be charged at regular rates - typically 1 cent a minute. There is also a rollover for minutes, so if you used less than 2000 in the past 2 months we can use those minutes to offset a month that you went above the limit.

Thanks!

On Thu, Mar 27, 2014, at 09:40 PM, xxxxxxxx xxxxxx wrote:
>
> Customer Contact from XXXXXX:
>
> F9 Support,
>
>
..........

>
> Also, before adding funds, I wanted to confirm that $60 will be
> sufficient to cover a years worth of service on my current choice of
> F5 Premium plan with the understanding that plan minutes/month covers
> up to
> 2000 minutes or maybe even 4000 minutes since I will only use it as a
> outgoing service.
>
> Thanks,
> xxxxxxxx

Since then, I have been extremely satisfied with their level of service and quality and have transferred my DID to them. Add me to the list as another satisfied customer.

kerstuf
join:2014-02-12
Tellico Plains, TN

kerstuf

Member

I have been extremely pleased with my subscription to Future 5. Nitzan has been really helpful with questions and assistance. Good people.

AllThumbs
join:2006-02-07
Charleston, SC

AllThumbs

Member

said by kerstuf:

I have been extremely pleased with my subscription to Future 5. Nitzan has been really helpful with questions and assistance. Good people.

Ditto! We've been after nitzan See Profile to do this for years. Glad he finally took the plunge. Plenty of safeguards for him and no B.S. for customers.
astan
join:2005-06-15
Santa Monica, CA

1 edit

astan to nitzan

Member

to nitzan
said by nitzan:

said by astan:

we seriously considered just switching back to the yearly plan and disallowing the 3-months-at-a-time promo. You should be proud of yourself - you sure showed us!

For the record: as we told this guy when he decided to wage war on this policy - you are required to maintain a positive balance in your account to keep service active, which means effectively service will cost $15 initially, another $15 two months later, and then another $15 every 3 months. This beats every other similarly-priced plans I know of (Anveo/Phone Power/Vestalink) as they all require you to commit to a year in advance which we don't.

I would not have even tried your service if it was $60 upfront. I am sure others only tried your service because it only was suppose to cost $5/mo. That is why you lowered the requirement.

If you charged $60/yr., it would cost $75 to start your service. (According to your new disclosures $60 plus $15 to keep a positive balance). If you charged $60 a year, Phone Power and Vestalink are much better deals - they include E911. You charge an additional $12/yr for that service.

You went from saying "$15 will get you started and pay for 3 months of service." to now saying "$15 initially, another $15 two months later" How is paying $30 in two months better than paying $35 for a whole year with Vestalink? (it was $30/yr back in April)

How is one guy ruining it for everyone else? Do I control your company? You just don't like people pointing out the flaws in your statements and policies. ("unlimited" means 2000 minutes, $5/mo means $30 for three months)

I have never seen this policy " you are required to maintain a positive balance in your account to keep service active" published on your website or TOS. There is no need for it in a prepaid service.

toro
join:2006-01-27
Scarborough, ON

toro

Member

Obviously your math is flawed. From what I understand, you are not required to maintain a balance of $15 or more, you are required to maintain a balance of $5 or more, and the minimum payment is $15 or so. If you paid $30 initially, you wouldn't have to add money to your account until after 5 months.
Also, you keep bringing Vestalink into discussion, which leads me to believe the only thing that matters to you is cost. I suggest you do a little more research, they launched the service just a few months ago and I've seen more complains about them than I've seen about F9 in the last 3-4 years.
For that matter, you may consider going with MagicJack or NetTalk who I believe are even cheaper than Vestalink.
FYI I am not affiliate nor use the services of either one of the companies mentioned above.
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1 to astan

Premium Member

to astan
The requirement that there be a positive balance for service to continue is pretty much universal. CallWithUs, Voip.MS, CallCentric, I am sure others too.

Here's the thing.

Suppose you put in the $15 on January 1st to cover the 3 months.

Right away on January 1st, $5 is allocated for the plan for January, so balance is now $10.

On February 1st, $5 is allocated for February, so balance is now $5.

On March 1st, $5 is allocated for March, so balance is now [zero] even though only 2 months have passed, it's the very start of the 3rd month.

So after 2 months plus a day (approx) the balance is zero. So F9 is saying that another deposit (or payment or funding, whatever word you want) would be due on March 1st to not have the account with zero funding.

And you want there to be funding in case of calls that are not covered by the plan, etc.

-----

I do think that F9 could make it clearer, but I also think that you need understand the reasoning behind this.
Mango
Use DMZ and you get a kick in the dick.
Premium Member
join:2008-12-25
www.toao.net

Mango

Premium Member

Perhaps charging $4.99 for the first month only would be an effective workaround for this issue. Or, giving a $15.01 credit on the first $15 deposit. I admit I would be confused if I paid for three months of service, and my service was cut off after the first two.
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1

Premium Member

Agreed.

Or maybe just pay $20 up front.

Part of the issue is having some funds on hand for calls that are not covered, or to provide a cushion if the person forgets to renew on time. But it is confusing.

That's why I favor just month by month, anyway, but I always leave a surplus of funds on hand with my providers.

Noah123
@68.183.195.x

Noah123 to PX Eliezer1

Anon

to PX Eliezer1
said by PX Eliezer1:

The requirement that there be a positive balance for service to continue is pretty much universal.
.
.
.
And you want there to be funding in case of calls that are not covered by the plan, etc.
.
.
.
I do think that F9 could make it clearer, but I also think that you need understand the reasoning behind this.

What you are saying is a little surprising to me, and I don't understand the reason. I'm with Anveo if it matters. I've been assuming I could run my balance right down to zero. And then outbound calls would stop working, since I pay by the minute. But incoming is unlimited, so would keep working until the period I've prepaid fully expires. Have I been mistaken? Never tried this, and don't plan to, but it could happen unintentionally. (When I incurred a porting fee they kindly allowed my balance to go negative. I assumed I couldn't make calls, and didn't even try.)
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1

Premium Member

This is from Anveo Terms of Service:

Service is offered on pre-paid bases. You agree to maintain positive account balance all the time in order to receive the Service(s). Accounts with negative balances may be suspended, terminated or be limited in service; specifically phone numbers assigned by Anveo will not accept incoming calls. Effective Account Balance is calculated as current account balance minus the amount reserved for all current call in progress. Reserved amount is calculated based on 2 hours of talk time for each call in progress. Effective Account Balance should be positive in order to place any call using the Service. When Effective Balance is negative the service will be limited including without limitation calls to new participants of a call campaign or a conference call or API requests will be terminated. You hereby release and agree to hold harmless Anveo from and against any damages or liabilities of any kind related to such limitation of service when Effective Balance or Account Balance is negative.

»www.anveo.com/consumer/legal.asp

As I said, most folks have [something] like this.

Regarding how it works with Anveo in actuality you'd have to ask them.
wideglide36
join:2003-11-08
Altoona, PA

1 edit

wideglide36 to PX Eliezer1

Member

to PX Eliezer1
Now I'm a little confused.

If you make an initial payment of $15.00, are you saying that after the end of the second month, you need to make another $15.00 deposit or not have any service?

Sounds very confusing.

I would think that if you make an initial payment of $15.00 you would have service until the very beginning of the fourth month. It doesn't work that way?

Are these facts clearly explained in this thread somewhere?
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1

Premium Member

said by wideglide36:

Now I'm a little confused.

If you make an initial payment of $15.00, are you saying that after the end of the second month, you need to make another $15.00 deposit or not have any service?

Not 15, rather 5, which apparently is for incidentals or reserves or whatever. And if it's not needed for a call to the Pope or something like that, it will remain available forever. So F9 would be better off just charging 20 to sign up, rather than 15.

Again, this is how I understand it:
»Re: [Future9] Introducing Future 5 - unlimited* service for $5/mo ($60/year).

But let Nitzan answer the questions. It's his baby.

-----

I'm walking back over to the CallCentric lounge.
nitzan
Premium Member
join:2008-02-27

nitzan

Premium Member

To be honest I've never even considered this issue. I just (stupidly, I guess) assumed people would have no problem actually, uh, um, prepaying for a, uh, um, prepaid service.

And again, I don't want to have one person ruin it for everyone else. Y'all are NOT required to prepay for the entire year.

Davesnothere
Change is NOT Necessarily Progress
Premium Member
join:2009-06-15
Canada

Davesnothere

Premium Member

 
And we VoIPers are all folks who used to pay Verizon or AT&T (or Bell in MY country) huge STACKS of money each month in the not so distant past.

And for WHAT ?!

So why is the comparatively paltry amount which you or most other VoIPPs charge us such a hardship ?

I understand the principle of what is being debated here, but still....
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1

Premium Member

We have some folks who cannot make relative comparisons, but who see everything in absolutes.