T-Mobile increases SMS text messaging rates – gives customers an out
By Will Park on Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 at 2:38 PM PST In Announcements, Financial/Corporate News, Services, T-Mobile
Remember all the hoopla that was stirred up by T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s increased SMS text message fees last year? Right, well it looks like the cost of sending a text message outside of a bundled texting plan will increase from $0.15 cents to a more profitable $0.20 cents.
The pricing increase obviously won’t be hitting those with unlimited texting plans very hard, but anyone opting to pay per-message or maxing out their bundled text message quota will be seeing an extra nickel leaving their wallets with each press of the “Send” key.
The 5-cent price increase for sending SMS text messages falls in line with what other carriers are charging for text messages. And, depending on your past text message usage, T-Mobile customers may be allowed to cancel their contracts without being charged an ETF – similar to last year’s contract-canceling hulabaloo. Presumably, anyone with a history of paying for text messages on a per-message basis would be let out of their contract sans-ETF. We’re not sure if canceling your bundled text messaging plans and then firing off a few 15-cent SMS text messages will help your case at this point, but it might not hurt to try.
The new 20-cent-per-message rates go in to effect on August 29, so mark your calendars and hop on a text messaging plan post-haste.
[Via: Engadget Mobile]
::HOW TO WIN::
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Here’s my story. I called a total of 3 times and got the runaround, but in the end, I won! Cancelled both my lines without the ETF. Here’s how it went down (shortened of course):
Call 1: Me and Susan (aggressive)
ME: I’d like to cancel because of the txt message increase.
SUSAN: Sorry to hear that. Let me check. Ok. You can cancel for $200 etf.
ME: Ummm… In your Terms and Conditions it says if there’s a chance that increases your monthly charges, like the txt increase, I can cancel without an ETF.
SUSAN: Ok. Let me talk to my supervisor.
(3 Minutes and one bad song later)
SUSAN: Ok, we’ve checked your account and since you had a txt plan in May and didn’t go over, you don’t quailfy for the “waiver” because you haven’t gone 3 months without an overage or without a txt plan.
ME: So… I would qualify next month?
SUSAN: No. Because we’ve “made a note of this”
(HANG-UP)
Call 2: Me and Jeff (polite)
(Requested cancel b/c of txt increase)
Jeff: Sorry about that. I understand what with the gas prices these days. Ok, we can cancel your account with a $200 ETF.
ME: According to your Terms & Conditions this change would be, “Materially Adverse” to me and I qualify for the ETF to be waived.
JEFF: Ok, let me look into this.
(SEVERAL songs later)
JEFF: Thanks for waiting. When did you recieve notification?
ME: I recieved notification on http://www.tmobile.com, it’s on the main page.
JEFF: You didn’t get the notification in the mail?
ME: No. I recieved notification on your website and the Terms & Conditions don’t say it has to be a physical notification.
JEFF: I’m sorry, I’m not trying to be difficult, it’s just our policy.
(HANG-UP)
Call 3: Me, Eric, and Antwon (both apathetic)
ME: (Request cancellation b/c of txt msg increase)
ERIC: I’ll forward you to our “cancellation department”
ANTWON: I heard you want to cancel.
ME: Yes b/c of the txt msg increase.
ANTWON: Ok we’ll cancel the two numbers today and the numbers will be available for 60 days.
ME: So… I qualify for the ETF to be waived according the the Terms & Conditions since it’s “Materially Adverse” to me.
ANTWON: I know, I applied the waiver.
ME: Thanks!
(HANG-UP)
In the end I called 3 times (4 different people) and although I was a nervous wreck, I eventually got someone that wasn’t trying to yank my chain, and cancelled my account without the ETF!
THE BEST ADVICE: Just keep calling, quote the Terms & Conditions, and tell them the change is “Materially Adverse” to you.
I just went through the exact same procedure as neokusama did above. The only changes were this:
1) the first customer service manager I got on the phone disconnected me
2) the next person I got on the phone attempted to persuade me from mentioning in the call that I had not gone over in text messages in the past 3 months (apparently CYA on her part)
3) she miraculously “found” some overages that the other two people couldn’t see and was able to cancel as a result of those overages.
Now I can tell you for a fact that I have not gone over in my text messages in the past 3 months, but clearly she needed to record on the phone call that she had found some in case she was audited. Overall it took about 30 minutes. Well worth it for an iPhone.
I called T Mobile yesterday and had a long 3 hr conversation with them to wave my ETF for two lines i.e $400. But they kept on saying they did notify me by a flier in the bill that message rates are going up. I was not sure if they sent any flier of that sort. They also said, I was out of the time frame in which they could wave off my ETF. They were adamant to escalate my case further. Now what??…….I dunno what to do…?…I want to get rid of T-Mobile…..and I am not sure whether to lodge a complain with FCC, as I dunno the consequences of it.(Legal stuff, so kinda worried)…
yo kn0 wat i think…
tm0bile should give free textinq to the myfaves plan..
that will boost up their customers.. =]