I'm having the darndest time trying to drop the third leg --the digital phone-- of the Cable HDTV + cable broadband Internet + digital phone --
without having my monthly charge increased for doing so.
I'm told by
Time Warner that the following is by an Internet promo service that brings business to Companies, but its promotions are not disputed by TW, you just have to dig for it a little and give more info about yourself when you go to the actual TW website.
Having called Time Warner here in NewYorkCity to drop the digital phone part from what started as the "Triple play" and keep cable HDTV + cable broadband internet (presently advertised as "double play" for $84.90) and reduce my Monthly charge accordingly, I was pointedly told
"you would be foolish to do that because having just the two services would raise your monthly charge."
The difference between the two packages for what they call the “Voice" addition is $39.95. Denying me that reduction when I request a drop of the Voice (Digital telephone over cable) and adding $17 instead
per month to drop that feature amounts to about $57 a month every month.
How things now stand:
I was blatently told when I tried to drop the digital phone thatI had it so wonderful that I was paying less that if I had only the TV and the Internet. Remember the saying that if something seems too good to be true, it's probably not?
After the “you would be foolish to drop the digital phone” and the "How wonderful you have it" conversation with TW Customer Service and my clear complaint about how imposing such a monetary penalty for service droppers in effect creates an implied contract when there is no contract to remain under service
and since this implied contract was a) never disclosed and agreed to and B) is not time limited which is a requirement of contracts, that this policy is defective on all accounts.
This undisclosed policy of inverted pricing so that when the promotional period of one year ran out the double play arrangement becomes more costly so that the triple play pak would seem like bargain in comparison.
I was told I would be contacted by an individual by name who would offer their “triple-play” for $99.95 (for new customers in Manhattan ?) This is considerably less than what I'm paying now, but I suspected this might only be promotional rate only to run out again in a year.
Instead I was called by an individual with another name who talked in hyperspeed, was the proverbial “wouldn’t let you get a word in edgewise” type and seemed to want to berate the whole concept that anybody would want to drop digital phone with TW. Finally she resorted to an
analogy that I found not only far removed from the instant circumstances but actually argued against her position.
The TW Analogy A store has a promotion where t-shirts cost $15 but if you buy two t-shirts they’ll sell them at $20 for both. If you return one t-shirt, they will charge you $15 for the remaining shirt.
Ignoring the fact for a minute that this is merchandise and not a monthly service, this very analogy argues against her position that if you return one of the two shirts the store will
return the $5. The correct analogy is that you return one of the shirts, the store keeps the shirts (drops the phone service) doesn't return the $5 (or lower the charge) but raises the charge on your credit card for the remaining shirt from$15 to $25 so you end up a loser on both acounts. This is Time Warner's pricing posture if you want to drop the third item of the "three pak".
Two things emerge from my dealings with Time Warner:
There is almost a near desperation to get you to keep a service that neither want nor need no matter what. Accompanying that, there is a mindset seems that the customer needs to justify dropping a service as I was repeatedly asked Why I want to drop the digital phone component and an aggressive “You would be foolish because we’ll raise your price if you do” stance.
Neither of these makes Time Warner a Company I want to deal with. Right now I will be exploring my options regarding other broadband providers and perhaps even Cable providers or even the feasibility of doing without cable TV entirely as many others have done.
My advice to anybody thinking of enrolling in Time Warner's "triple Play" or any of their other Promotional packages is to inquire as --as specifically as possible --what happens when the promotional period runs out.
Don't be satisfied with some vague assurance that it may go up a little. The real issue is: What happens if you want to drop one or more of the two or three constituent components: what happens to the pricing then if you chose to drop something? Does it go down when you want less or is it priced for
existing customers to go up so as to keep you on board and paying the now higher fees ?
MegalosSkylaki
Linear Mode
