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'Stop the price-gouging’: Biden hits corporations
(www.cnbc.com)
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this post was submitted on 28 Nov 2023
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Was traveling last month and just saw Xfinity decided to raise my internet-only bill by 40 bucks a month, and the second charge just went through. Not even an email on the rate increase from what I can tell, just a notification that I got Peacock streaming "included" (a 5.99 value).
Looking forward to the call tomorrow. Any advice outside of staying zen and remembering the human on the other end of the line?
Just remember that it's business. It should be boring. They raised your rate, it isn't worth that price to you, and be bored with asking them to process the cancellation.
If it is worth some price to you, they may offer you another deal. Know what you're willing to accept, but don't expect anything.
Also, you may be able to bypass all of this by checking to see if you can cancel from their app or website.
The problem with Internet service providers is that they are pretty much needed in the modern era and they are often monopolies.
For example, I have Spectrum. I use the Internet for light data items like posting on social media and checking email, but also heavier data uses like working from home and streaming videos.
If Spectrum decided that my monthly rate was going up by 100%, I could theoretically cancel my service, but I wouldn't have anywhere to go to. There are no other ISPs in the area. I work from home as a web developer and so can't be without Internet access.
Spectrum has me and they know it. Thanks to being a monopoly, the price isn't "whatever the customer will pay," it's "whatever the monopoly says it is."
Ah, but see, they're not a monopoly because you can get DSL or a 5G hotspot! Those are viable alternatives, right?
~ FCC
This is why I consider Starlink, despite being owned by Elon Musk, so important. It's creating competition in places where there is none, because it doesn't need to run cables which nobody wants to do.
You should check whether it's available in your area, and if it is, when you talk to Spectrum you know you have a backup, and can even say so.
Similarly, if their service isn't as fast as Starlink, you can say that as a reason for cancelling, and if you convince a bunch of neighbors to do the same, the landline isp may be inclined to upgrade the cables to try and get the business back.
Though really, we should have a government run satellite internet like Starlink as a 'base level' provider for all. Let companies compete and do better if they want business.
I've looked into satellite Internet before and it's typically slow speeds with low data caps for a lot of money.
I just checked StarLink's site and it doesn't look like much competition to cable Internet. The cost is $120 a month which is double what I'm currently paying. In addition, I would need to pay $600 for the equipment to connect to their service. Meanwhile, I get a free cable modem from Spectrum or can buy one for well under $100.
The speeds seem more reasonable than other satellite Internet providers, so there's at least that plus. I also couldn't find any data limits, which is good.
Still, that price point keeps it from being an effective competition to Spectrum. If Spectrum threatened to increase my rates to $80 a month, I couldn't exactly threaten to leave for a $120 a month (and $600 initial equipment cost) service.
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YMMV, but I've ended up with substantially better deals twice now just by calling. It's getting harder to get a live human, but they have more flexibility. I too have internet only, so no bund discounts either.
A bit late to your comment but they simply don't want you to talk to a human. It's that easy. Talking to a human results in empathy, which results in giving away of deals the management doesn't really want you to give out.
They'd rather you get frustrated at being able to not reach a human and then you just give up and be a good sheep and pay what you're expected to.
Oh, unless you want to cancel, in which case it will take no less than 10 different humans bouncing you off various departments and scripts because making it easy to cancel also results in bad metrics
Thanks for the moral support, I really appreciate it.
I had to get Xfinity on the line for my grandmother last year. The phone options for modifying or canceling an account or service went to holds that eventually just dropped the call. The option for adding a service went right to a human though and they were able to cancel the services anyway.
Even the "tip" one of their support people gave me for getting a live human faster stopped working this year... it's a crap company, but they are definitely the best deal on my block.
This years evil award goes to Frontier Communication who we're charging my folks $35/month for DSL that maxed out at 7 megabits a second. And (I kid you not) commercials for those "I've fallen and can't get up pendants" if you call the support line after 5 or on a weekend. Scamming old people is now an acceptable corporate business model.
Spectrum pulled some similar BS on me. They magically added their tv streaming subscription to my bill when all I have with them is internet. I will say the cust service rep was extremely helpful but that shit better not be on my bill anymore.