I sent an excerpt from my earlier post below to Verizon executives. Feel free to copy/paste/reuse/refer/link/plagarize as you see fit to spread the word about this debacle to your friends and family (not limted to 10 people).
An Open Letter To Verizon Executives:
You and everyone defending Verizon continues to avoid the question I have posed near the bottom of this message. You just don't get it and the fact that you believe you do is more evidence that you don't. I think we've all pretty clearly explained why this is a problem for us today even if we haven't already had to "choose" between several poor and unappealing options. If we don't speak up now it can only get worse between now and then. In the purest sense, we aren't being "forced" into the plans because we can keep using our old, broken, or worn out phones or we can downgrade to "simpleton feature phones" but everyone at Verizon should stop hiding behind that technicality because it makes them look silly, ignorant, and out of touch with reality. Verizon cannot justify this change as anything but profiteering and a revenue grab at the expense of many of its (soon to be former) most loyal customers. Don't even get me started on warranty replacements and BYOP triggering the mandatory data requirement. Your company is driving away families and future generations (read revenue streams). If I realistically had a choice, I'd leave Verizon today and I'm sure you and I would both be happier. If you want to pay my $700 in ETF's I'll walk away and never look back.
serenevey wrote:
phones REQUIRE data support. It's their whole purpose. Verizon's not making you buy the fancy touch screen phone and I can guarantee any phone company you go to will tell you the same thing...The device won't function properly without it. I work for one of these Major Phone Companies (which I won't say)
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EnvTouch and Nationwide Connect. Gosh, I wonder which one you work for??!! Guess these complaints are hitting a little close to your paycheck.
I do agree with your comment that "any phone company you go to will tell you the same thing" because they are probably all equally willing to lie to make a quick sale and generate a contracted annuity. Explain how is it that my phone didn't require data support and still functioned properly prior to January 18th but now suddenly data is its "whole purpose"? Does this mean I can expect Verizon to do me a favor and deliver a firmware "upgrade" to disable my camera, music player (like they did with VX8300), and speakerphone? If you hadn't started off with absurd mistruths I might have read more of your post because, though I doubt it, you might have had something truthful or meaningful to contribute. Either that or you, with all of your years of industry experience, don't understand your company's offerings or you don't know the difference between a smartphone and a multimedia phone.
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ctmainiac22 wrote:
I got my Omnia in the Fall of 2009. I was *required* then to upgrade to the full data plan because I wanted/needed a phone that had a better calendar feature than the typical ones in the "lesser" phones (I sync to Google calendar and MS Outlook)...I had used my "New Every Two" for the Omnia only a few months prior...Seems ridiculous to me...
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Sorry but not a lot of sympathy for what sounds like buyer's remorse and is completely different than those who are upset about the forced $9.99 monthly data extortion. Sounds like you had a choice, made a choice, used NE2, and perhaps bought more than you could afford. Yes, you fell into a sales trap but it's not what this fight is about.
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crimedoggies wrote: this is simply put the evolution of the wireless industry... When texting first came out people swore it
would never catch on... If you don't wish to evolve with the industry, then you don't have to...start browsing the web, checking
email, updating Facebook status and tweeting away.
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So, the evolution of the wireless industry is to take away customer choice, change the rules after a contract is signed, force people to pay for something they don't need or want because you think you know best, slip in fraudulent $1.99 monthly data charges until caught, and take away features from customers and call it an upgrade? You and bslady85 and the rest of the Verizon employees need to stop tryinig to tell us why what you think is good for you is good for everyone else. Please tell us what happened on January 18th such that I now have to pay $9.99 a month to get the features I had "evolved" to like 16GB music player, qwerty keboard, touchscreen, speakerphone, and 3.2 megapixel camera. You are asking all of us "devolve" if we don't want to "evolve" under your terms. When I chose to "evolve" with texting I don't remember being forced to buy a $9.99 texting plan even though my phone was texting capable. I wasn't forced to choose a phone with no keypad. I already have all of the access at hand to do my Facebook, tweeting, blogging, and surfing. Do you really think none of us do those thngs just because we don't do them like you choose to do them? The fact that your needs or lifestyle are different than mine don't make mine and everyone else unlike you wrong. This is what Verizon doesn't get at all. You and the rest of the Verizon employees evidently have no idea of what it means to have 5 lines on a family share plan with staggered contract dates with teenagers who text and take pictures and listen to music but do not want or need data plans (that are inadequate at $9.99 anyway). So, the best you can do is tell us we aren't evolving and that we should downgrade to "simpleton feature phones" until we meet your standard? I guess we just don't appreciate them wanting to help us "evolve" and we apparently aren't smart enough to make decisions on our own.
If this is so beneficial to all of us and Verizon is so confident that we all will be happier with data and that are underutilizing our phones, then why won't Verizon waive ETF's after changing the rules on us midstream? After all, we'd be crazy to leave these great new "benefits", right? Of course they won't waive fees because you, everyone on here, and everyone at Verizon sees this for exactly what it is...a money grabbing, greedy, blatant attempt to increase revenue for a company that just announced poor quarterly results and recently got caught "red"handed allegedly assessing fraudulent phantom $1.99 data charges hoping customers wouldn't notice or complain while rewarding sales and customer service reps for providing false or misleading information to customers about the issue. I would have had more respect for Verizon if they had just said "we're in deep doo-doo and are raising prices to generate more revenue and profits". It's the same reason why you and no one else is able to offer any plausible reason why this change is a good thing for customers and can only spew the party line of "industry trends", "too many customers were running up high data bills and seeking refunds", "choose a simpleton feature phone", "you can take your business elsewhere", "this is a positve change for the majority of customers", "most people find they like using data once they try it", "all of the other carriers do it", "the map", "superior coverage", "get over it", "accept it and move on" etc. etc. All any of you can do is avoid the questions we have and spout things that make you look silly and ignorant.
I've yet to see anyone put into words the "benefits" to the customer and no one including you or anyone from your company has answered the most asked, most avoided question that would solve all of this and make the forums go quiet:
- Upon eligible upgrade, why won't Verizon waive the $9.99 monthly data fee in exchange for me accepting data blocking on that line?
If you or someone else from Verizon can give me and everyone else here a meaningful response explaining why this wouldn't work (and avoid crying about why it is bad for Verizon's revenue) and can clearly state why this would be bad for customers then I will quietly wait out the contract on my 5 lines with no further "upgrades" (to phones with features identical to those I already have) or "downgrades" (to simpleton feature phones) and will make the best decision for me and my family when I am out from under Verizon's extortion schemes. We are only here voicing our frustrations because most of us effectively have no choice because we are locked into one or more contracts. Waive ETF's or waive the $9.99 and I will happily go silent.
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