Anon | Anybody heard anything final about IBS Networks?
I'm a residential SDSL subscriber to IBS Networks. I've checked their webpage (»www.goibsdsl.com ), and although there is info about alternatives for their business accounts, the only thing they have for residential is a form to fill out saying that they 'will respond as soon as they can.' There is no explicit verbage that they will be able to provide switchovers for their residential customers, nor conversely that they are going to leave us out in the cold. I really don't know what to do. I've found another ISP that I should be able to hook up with (SpeakEasy), but I'm a little hesitant to book an order until I hear definitively from my ISP about what they're going to be able to do (if anything...).
I've been ringing their phone off the hook, and there is absolutely noone there that will answer the phone. I wonder if anyone is even left there...
Any other IBS customers (or anyone else) out there that has heard anything?
Thanks for any info...
Another about-to-be-hobbled DSL user,
JCB |
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Anon | I didn't even bother trying to call. I'm also waiting some word from them (I filled in that residential transfer form).
I also went ahead and ordered cable internet from StarPower just in case I'm left in the dark *really* soon.
What I'm really curious is about all the residential customers who pre-paid 12 months of service and IBS doesn't have a viable alternative for them. I remember the gruesome words of that contract, now they're the ones breaking it.
P.S. IBS does not operate on weekends from what I know.. so don't expect anything till Monday. |
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dms1964
join:2000-11-09
Cleveland, OH
| reply to Anon
IBS now states that anyone picking up new service through them will get credit for any time remaining on their contacts. The main problem is that even in the best of times IBS's customer service left something to be desired. I'd imagine they are swamped right now and do not have the resources to handle this. I've signed up with Telocity but also filled out the form with IBS to see what comes of it. Not holding my breath though.... |
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Anon | reply to Anon
To Wikka & DMS1964,
Yeah, my feelings are about the same. IBS's customer service has always been lacking, and the way they seem to have crawled into a hole on this is leaving me with the gut feeling that I am going to be on my own with them. I guess I'll get going on my order from SpeakEasy (or maybe check out cable availability) and hope for the best.
It's going to be VERY tough going back to dialup in the interim - it's like having to trade your CORVette in for CHEVette! |
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MantricOptic
join:2001-03-24
Baltimore, MD
| I just this email a couple of minutes ago, SDSL's dead tommorrow. Oh boy, just what I want overpriced service!
I think I'm moving to the woods now.
____________________
To all of our customers with NorthPoint lines:
This is a follow-up message to the one we sent
on Friday the 23rd of March. We will continue
to try to keep you up to date on the NorthPoint
disaster with any late breaking news and with
all the different options we are offering our
clients to be able to re-establish their DSL
service.
For the most up to date info, visit:
»www.goibsdsl.com/northpoint-disaster.htm
At this point it looks like NorthPoint lines
may be turned off on Monday the 26th of March.
This means that your home or Business will be
left without Internet access until new service
can be established. We are working on offering
new service to all customers right now.
It is Imperative that you move now to get service
re-ordered either through IBS Networks or from
another source. The sooner service is ordered
the sooner you would be getting installed.
********** BUSINESS CUSTOMERS *****************
Some of our customers have expressed the desire
to move off DSL altogether and get a more reliable
and faster line.
So, for customers in the Northern Virginia & DC
Metro Area we are offering a low-cost T1 option.
See: »www.goibsdsl.com/metrot1.htm
for the full details.
For DSL reconnection:
For Business customers, please use this link to
check if we can offer service to you:
»www.goibsdsl.com/moveline.htm
If is says service is available, please fax in
a new order form to get your order processing.
We are offering a free install and a free router
to all current customers with the trade-in of
their old router.
If your state is not listed, or if it does not
say service is available at your address, please
fill out the business contact form. We will use
those forms that are submitted to try to get you
service via a different carrier.
The business contact form is at:
»www.goibsdsl.com/np-contact.htm
Connect your office with an Interim dial-up
connection via your Netopia Router:
For businesses that have a Netopia Router, you
can connect a modem to the AUX port on the router
and use a regular dial-up Internet connection.
This may be a good option to keep email & other
functions flowing until your new service is
installed.
See »www.goibsdsl.com/northpoint-disaster.htm
for details on how to do this.
************************************************
********** RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS ***************
The simplest way to get service started right away
would be to order our business class service above.
If that is not an option because of the higher
cost, or if your state is not listed or service is
not available at your address, use our residential
contact form. We are working on some options with
various carriers to get all of our residential
clients service at a similar cost that they have
been used to with us.
Our residential form is at:
»www.goibsdsl.com/np-res-contact.htm
************************************************
Please email tech support if you have any questions,
IBS Networks Tech Support:
mailto:support@goibsdsl.com |
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Anon | reply to Anon
I'm just glad I kept my cable as well... Not sure how well I can stomach paying twice as much for half the usable speed of my previous line. |
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bigboi
@216.19.x.x
| reply to Anon
Re: Anybody heard anything final about IBS Networks?
Well, ur first mistake was to try to get support from IBS Networks. Before I actually subscribed to their SDSL service, they were beyond willing to give me info and reply to all my concerns. Now that they have me in a contract, I'm just another person to take money from and shrug off. I have to admit tho, the SDSL service itself I have enjoyed very much. But I'll be d@mned if i pay $200+ a month for the same service with a few added (to me, useless) features.
I have already switched over to Telocity ADSL. IBS Networks obviously can not provide me with what they said they would in the contract so I'm moving on. I see all these other companies have REALLY gotten on the ball searching for alternatives and many have found alternatives yet IBS networks is left just simply sending us depressing emails and making useless forms for their website.
Also, just curious, isn't it sort of illegal for them to not continue to provide the service promised in a contract? |
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WTHIWWY
@allthatnet.com
| reply to Anon
Well, at least it looks that some ISPs--apparently not many--made some contingency plans, while IBS did not. While there may not be any legal basis for action against IBS for breaking the contract, I honestly do not care. I signed up with them and made a commitment and investment. I expect to get service at the agreed price till the end of my contract.
And I agree, IBS is leaving us hanging. Now I do not know, if I should hang on and see what they can do or place an order with someone else and pay 3-4x what I was paying for my present speed!!! One thing I know, I will not be switching to IBS business DSL... Why? Because for all purposes I *am* a business customer already despite the fact that I have a residential line. If they did not want my business, they would not have sold me their service. And since I am a paying customer, I am a business customer, no matter what they think. I did not sign the contract with NorthPoint, I signed it with IBS. And they are just about to fail me with their service.
The word about SpeakEasy is that they oversold their bandwidth and that their customer service got crappy lately (according to their own claims, their CS is overwhelmed due to the NorthPoint disaster). Not certain about the accuracy of the claims of either of the sides, just a word of caution.
I hope that something will come out of this noise about DSL. FTC should have looked into marketing of most ISP and web hosts long time ago. One-sided contracts with residential customers, endless vague promises of "unlimited" bandwidth and so on should have sparked their interest long time ago. I have no doubt that this will be a lesson for us all.
Then the funny thing about the AT&T transaction is that 81,000 customers paying average $49/month (what I pay) amounts to cool $47.5 million a year. OK, let us make it $30 million. That is 1/4 of what AT&T paid for the assets!!! Of course, some it will be eaten up by costs, but it cannot be that bad! AT&T already has support structure. I have no doubts that most people would agree to a small hike in the price at least for the duration of their contract instead of loosing their service. Talk about business decisions and customer acquisition costs...
Ta ta... |
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Anon
|  reply to Anon
What a sham IBS is, they owe me money which they will only give me if I sign a 1 year contract for $299 a month (what I am paying $39.00 a month now!)
What they are doing is illegal, admitting they owe folks a refund and in order to get your money due to you, you have to purchase additional services.
And then to make things worse they are demanding that residential customers such as myself are to imediately return the DSL modem to them, or their credit card will be charged $399.00. I am glad that the credit card I used to sign up for IBS is expired so they can't charge me. I would happily ship the modem back if IBS sent a prepaid return box for it, but I am NOT (repeat NOT) spending my money to ship something back to IBS when they already admit that they owe me money.
Got anything to say to that IBSDave?
Scott |
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bassrun
join:2001-02-16
Bethesda, MD
|  reply to Anon
Re: Interesting theory: AT&T and Verizon?
After just one wonderful month of SDSL service from IBS Networks (I guess I'm a rare subscriber who doesn't have any major complaints about IBS), it looks like my future is 56K..... I'd previously tried to get DSL from Speakeasy and then from PhoenixDSL, before I found IBS/NorthPoint. Unfortunately, my options are pretty limited. At 16,600' from the CO, Covad can't hook me up, PhoenixDSL (r.i.p.) got bought out by MegaPath (no residential service), and Comcast doesn't have cable modem service in my area. So, despite my better judgement, despite their well-deserved reputation as "Hell Atlantic", and despite their direct responsibility for the demise of NorthPoint, I decided to check out Verizon.
Verizon's online pre-qual says that they don't yet have DSL service in my area, but they expect to have it WITHIN A MONTH. Could it be that they're about to take over NorthPoint's equipment from AT&T? Did Verizon pull out of the NorthPoint purchase because they'd arranged to get a much cheaper price for the same equipment in a post-bankruptcy breakup of NorthPoint? Is it just my paranoia, or is this more than coincidence?? Would an agreement of this sort be legal??
BTW, I'm a bit bothered that so much of this thread is so negative toward IBS Networks. It's not their fault that NorthPoint went belly-up, and if NorthPoint were still around, I'll bet we'd all be getting pretty good service.
--John |
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ASELabs
join:2000-09-06
Westfield, NJ
| reply to Anon
Re: Anybody heard anything final about IBS Networks?
I'm VERY unhappy with this situation. I DID pay for 12 months of service and this will be 6 months so far. Now what happens?? They are in Chap 11 and I get no money back. I'm 17, I shouldn't be having to worry about this crap. Anyone have any suggestions on what I should do?
--
Northpoint dead: IBS Won't refund prepaid Months!!! |
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WTHIWWY
@allthatnet.com
| If you are 17, you should not pre-pay ahead of time!  Under 18 you are not obligated to keep your contractual obligations and cannot be forced into binding contract. Why do you think they do not give credit cards to those under 18?
Pay month-to-month if you can; that why you can at least get out of the contract. Oh, and check with the lawyer regarding this, 'cause I am not one...
I for one, cancelled my automatic monthly debit payment and do not plan to pay a cent extra until IBS notifies me what they are going to do about their side of the contract. And even then, my patience will not last long...
Good luck to all of us!  |
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Anon | reply to Anon
First let me say that the major problem here I believe was the Verison strike. In the summer of 2000 Verison had a hard time installing DSL circuits for ISPs. At the same time Northpoint and Verison were in talks which we all know ended in this disaster. When I signed up for IBS late June of 2000, Verison had just bought BA and there was nothing but good thoughts about DSL - including IBS and Northpoint.
If there is anything good to say about IBS is that there selling people get back to you right away. Then they make paying in advance better and say if you sign up to pay by the month you have to stay in for the whole year. Therefore for all of us that bought a year could not have known we were doing anything but the right thing.
Then hell, and I mean hell, broke loose. Verison didn't make the circuit and decided not to come to my house. Well DSL started in December, not 3 months but 6 months later. Ofcourse I could never talk to Verison or Northpoint for this time only IBS. I sat on hold, learned peoples names, called back and called back until they answered. And for all my work 4 months of service and no refund!
I am a 22 year-old college student that set this up for my parents and I. I am an engineer not a business man but two things I know. 1-The federal government runs better than IBS Networks, NorthPoint, and Verison and it is hard to be that bad. And 2-aren't class action lawsuits (ie Erin Brockivich) for this sort of thing - breach of contract. Don't tell me there is not a lawyer in DC that doesn't want this one. Probably even one with good ole IBS DSL.
I guess this means cable modem. No IP address, slower surfing, and latency through the roof, but wait sometimes it might take only 5 seconds not 7 seconds to download a file when compared to DSL. But wait there is either Covad or Verison for ADSL. But didn't Verison get us into this mess and Covad charge more for slower speeds. Oh Well this is horrible. :-( |
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julex
join:2001-03-23
New Britain, CT
|  reply to Anon
If you need static IP (sort of) go to www.dns2go.com and get their software (for free), subscribe to (for free again) something like jonbenak.dns2go.com and you're all set. Software dynamically updates their DNS server so that anyone connecting to jonbenak.dns2go.com will be redirected to YOUR machine. Just a suggestion though. I can't even get cable yet  :(:(:(:(:(:(:(:(:( |
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ahshibal
join:2000-10-25
Fort Lee, NJ
edited
| reply to Anon
Re: Anybody heard anything final about IBS Network
i am suprised to see there arent more ppl posting there displeasure on this whole ibs situation.i was suprised to see the line was working today eventhough it was mentioned to be going down. i checked out ibs's website and now it says for those who prepaid(im sure everyone has)either order a whole new line and get "last 3 month free", i dont even think they will last dat long, or file a claim. what is this crap. when they first posted something regarding northpoint situation on friday night. they had no nfo regarding how to deal with the situation. now they are telling to file a claim. it's a breach of contract, but this is unethical. ibs couldve set up better transition plan for us resdiential customers instead of dumping us like trash. IBS think they are smart by getting rid of residential customers this way to lessend their current financial situation. And im sure the impending new bankruptcy law had something to with ibs filing for bankruptcy all of sudden.
i for one is pissed. i still have damn 9 months of service left, they havent replied any of my emails regarding this issue, and they have the audacity tell us to send the modem back. i'll send it back if you f*ing pay for the shipping. This is utter crap. this is another way of isp trying to run away with all the cash. damn even flashcom died away more gracefully. they at least transfered some of their resdiential customers to other isp. this wont be the last time you will hear from me IBS
[text was edited by moderator] |
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bigboi
@216.19.x.x
| reply to Anon
Uhhhh....?
It's 6:40am Eastern Time on March 27th, 2001. IBS Networks wrote me (and i'm sure every other "customer") an email saying everyhing was to go down yesterday on the 26th. This is retarded. WE barely get any info from our ISP, and the info we do get, is inaccurate. Horrible business ethic. WWW.BBB.ORG should be packed with people filing complaints about crappy business practices. Oh well, just as long as they don't expect me to stick to a contract with servicds they can't provide then i'm cool. |
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Anon |  reply to Anon
I've still got a heartbeat - but for how long?
Well, I got the 'doomsday' message from IBS yesterday, too, and here it is (7:30AM EST ) on Tuesday, and I am still alive. I don't know what the H is going on, but I have STILL not heard anything directly from IBS, nor has anything changed on their website. I did get ahold of Telocity and opened up a new account with them - same price (49.00/month). They are month-to-month, and I can cancel w/o penalty anytime before I go online, so in the remote chance that IBS DOES do anything, I might be covered. More likely, I'll end up switching to Telocity.
Thanks for everyone's input - keep it coming! |
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dms1964
join:2000-11-09
Cleveland, OH
| reply to Anon
In a LITTLE defense of IBS
I wrote to IBS last Thursday when all of this Northpoint info came out. Repeated it Friday when the mention of a service credit popped up on their website. Still have not heard a thing. IBS never was very good at customer service so I'm not really surprised. What they did was maintain a well running network but this NP collapse was beyond their control and they probably do not have the resources to help us even if they were so inclined. I'm guessing their bankruptcy was done when they saw this coming a few weeks ago to protect them from claims that would arise. Why I don't like that I really cannot blame them for it. As for complaining about them stating NP was shutting down yesterday, many ISP's believed the same thing and DSLR is now reporting that a group of them are talking with NP about maintaining the lines for 30-60 days. Let's hope this happens. I tend to doubt that IBS is a part of these talks but hopefully all NP lines are maintained. I signed up with Telocity on Thursday, mainly because I see Rhythms as being more stable than Covad right now. If you can't order cable or DSL from a telco it's all a crapshoot now anyways. |
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Anon | reply to Anon
Re: Anybody heard anything final about IBS Networks?
9:45am .. Still alive on IBS.. I have no idea what email they sent because quite frankly I don't know my email account information (never used it)..
I have a Starpower.net guy here right now installing cable. But I'm sure gonna miss my SDSL line! |
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dnoyeB
Ferrous Phallus
join:2000-10-09
Southfield, MI
edited
|  reply to Anon
I'm displeased with their actions
1. IBS filing bankruptcy protects them from US requesting a refund for the unfulfilled portions of our contracts.
2. Send your DSL modem back. I know you shouldn't have to send it back till your contract is up, but holding on to it is in some ways acting like your still receiving some benefit. I would return it just to avert any crazy claims when we take them to the wall eventually.
3. Their service , speed, reliability have been flawless to me.
4. They owe me for about 8 months still. And whether I get it today or I get it in 10 years, be-dam-sho like the paper boy, I WILL COLLECT :(
5. I don't have a lawyer but I don't think I will forget to file those papers they send me (Thanks IBS) so that the courts recognize my claim on the unfulfilled portion of my contract.
6. Why does IBS expect me to sign ANOTHER 1 year contract just to get something from what they already owe me. THEY must accommodate me in any way possible to the extend of their financial ability. They must give me a business line if they don't have any others. This is what they are trying to prevent with bankruptcy.
7. Remember My contract is for "IBS NETWORKS" to provide DSL, I don't have a contract with NP and could care less about them. IBS Must get Covad or IBS must find whoever the heck they can, but IBS must provide my DSL, NOT NP.
8. The way they talk, "continuing" service is free as if its just a "changeover". Actually you have fresh bills and nothing but a waste for your current investment in DSL. They dont seem to get to that point.
NP can't possibly legally keep business DSL running while canceling their residentian DSL. They owe me just like they owe the businesses. There is no difference.
[text was edited by author 2001-03-27 10:31:14] |
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