God I love technology! I love the fact that I have a phone that I can use almost anywhere in the U.S. In the same breath, I hate this technology because it has given American business a new channel to maximize profits at the cost of screwing consumers for wanting the new technology. Specifically, I resent the fact that I am held hostage by what seems to be an interminable service contract with my wireless phone provider. I'm pretty pissed off right now and may not be thinking very clearly, but I can't think of another business (other than a few monopolies) where a service provider can require customers to extend a service contract when the equipment used to receive the service breaks. Can you?
I say "hostage" because when my wireless phone took its final gasp this week I called my provider and discovered that because my phone was out of its warranty period and because I hadn't subscribed to their extortion-priced replacement program, I not only have to buy my replacement phone from them, but doing so is classified as an "equipment upgrade," and therefore requires me to extend my contract by one year. Shame on me for not reading the fine print of my contract, but honestly, I am left wondering why mysteriously my local and long-distance providers did not place the same requirements on me when my the cordless phone I used for 10 years in my apartment died? Why should it be any different for the wireless providers? In most cases these are the same high-tech companies who provide the wire-based telephone, Internet, and cable service. What is the difference?!?!
What would your reaction be if you lived in a country where, for example, when you accidentally knock the lamp off your bedroom nightstand and break it, you discover that not only do you have to buy the replacement lamp from the electric utility, but you have to sign a service contract obligating you to continue using them for another year? And what happens if your light bulb burns out? Another day, week, or month for each bulb?
Here's another example, let's say that when my parents TV died a few years ago, the cable company had said, "It's an equipment upgrade so you have to commit to another year's service with us in order to use the new TV." If that happened my parents would have been on the phone with their state legislators, the New York State Attorney General, the Better Business Bureau, Consumer's Union, and their Congressional reps to rip the cable provider a new one. And just imagine how the broadcast and public television stations would want to get in on the act as well?
So do we have to submit to this extortion by these companies in order to use wireless phones? The short answer is yes, for now. The only alternative besides not using wireless phones altogether, is to buy one of their "pay-as-you-go" wireless phones. With one of these no contract "deals," you buy the phone and pay nearly twice the price per minute for a call as on their long-term extortion service agreements. Let's not overlook the fact that the phone you buy on a pay-as-you-go plans only works on a single network and you won't be able to switch to a different provider if you find one that's offers lower rates, unless of course you want to buy a new phone.
I haven't figured out what I'm going to do yet. I'm most likely going to buy the phone from my current provider—all the wireless providers appear to have similar terms in their contracts—because I need a phone to conduct my current job search. But don't think that I'm going to let this issue go. My ire is up and I'm going to send off a few choice words to my state legislative and congressional delegations to ask for an investigation into these questionable tactics. I think that somewhere along the way the FCC and several other branches of our government have failed us miserably. While I'm at it, I'm going to ask whatever happened to the legislation that stops the person receiving a call on their wireless phone from having to pay for a call while the person making the call pays too! Something is wrong with this picture.
I am sad you had such a bad experience.... some things that I have learned about my cell phone company. I have t-mobile, one yr. contract, free phone, the phone broke 3 times in that 1 year period, they replaced it for free, I never had to pay any replacement plan fee. The contract was up after the one yr, I signed a new one and I got another free phone. Also, I have an expensive plan with a lot of minutes, but they would let me downgrade to the cheapest plan at any time, you might look to see if you can get out of your contract, or if downgrading to their cheapest plan and carrying another companies plan might be feasible. T mobile is the only company that does the replacement phone every year I think.
Anyway,
Have a good night
Elizabeth