I have cablevision and I use my laptop often for busines when I am on the road. I always know I can get a signal at a nearby trainstation. Sometimes I just try to get a signal wherever I am and I get one ... AND ... when you are on Long Island you usually aren't too far from a train station. PLUS Verizon has fucked me in the ass on my phone bill for so long ... I don't know how I could get what I have from Cablevision for less with Verizon. If I was getting overcharged by verizon in the past then I don't want to give them my business now. My phone bill was like $120 a month for two lines. As far as I am concerned ... that's ridiculous. Now I have 2 phone lines, internet, tv (silver package - three TVs) all for $140 a month.
Fios Vs. Optimum
- Thread starter trader1
- Start date
Cablevison/FIOS negotiations
Every couple of years I get a big price boost in my TV/INT/phone combo. I call up customer service who sends me to “retention” services where I tell them I am very unhappy with the new bill and will be switching over to the “other guy” if they don’t do something about it. Retention service pretty much tells me to pound sand and they will miss me. Doesn’t matter if it is CableVision or FIOS – same story and I’m about to go through the process again.
I then signup with the other service at significantly lower price and have to deal with the new station lineup and other peculiarities of the new guy. I own my email addresses so that's not a problem when I switch.
Right after I switch and the new service is up and running, I call the old service to cancel my account and when I tell him my conversation with retention services the guy is “shocked, simply shocked” that someone in retention services would be so insensitive – and what is it he has to do to keep me. At that point I tell him “its over”, I've already switched and just cancel my account. He gives one more try and I ask him "what part of it's over didn't you understand. Please cancel my account".
When the promotional pricing from the new guy runs out the process starts all over again.
There’s got to be a better way besides causing everyone (them) to spend money removing and installing services and the hassle that I have to go through periodically.
Any ideas?
Every couple of years I get a big price boost in my TV/INT/phone combo. I call up customer service who sends me to “retention” services where I tell them I am very unhappy with the new bill and will be switching over to the “other guy” if they don’t do something about it. Retention service pretty much tells me to pound sand and they will miss me. Doesn’t matter if it is CableVision or FIOS – same story and I’m about to go through the process again.
I then signup with the other service at significantly lower price and have to deal with the new station lineup and other peculiarities of the new guy. I own my email addresses so that's not a problem when I switch.
Right after I switch and the new service is up and running, I call the old service to cancel my account and when I tell him my conversation with retention services the guy is “shocked, simply shocked” that someone in retention services would be so insensitive – and what is it he has to do to keep me. At that point I tell him “its over”, I've already switched and just cancel my account. He gives one more try and I ask him "what part of it's over didn't you understand. Please cancel my account".
When the promotional pricing from the new guy runs out the process starts all over again.
There’s got to be a better way besides causing everyone (them) to spend money removing and installing services and the hassle that I have to go through periodically.
Any ideas?
On planet Beta III, where I rule, there are also Cablevision & FIOS.
I currently have FIOS and recently have been too lazy to change and go through what you've described.
These companies piss me off so much that I'm considering having them absorbed. They rely on our laziness and the pain that they know it is to make the change. For example, most people have to take time off from work to accommodate the appointment schedules of the company you will be switching to.
Somebody recently told me that if you call up Cablevision and get an appointment for having them install their service at your house, you will get a confirmation number. Then, they said, you call FIOS and tell them the grim news. You have a Cablevision confirmation number, and give it to them. According to this person, FIOS will then, and only then, agree to treat you as a "new" customer and give you the triple play deal for two years (or whatever the term of contract is) for the low price.
I have not tried this yet, but after I finish my current heavy dose of communing, I think I will give this a try.
I assume it would be a similar deal if you have Cablevision (vice-versa) because these companies obviously copy each other.
--Landru
"Odd. The expression on that man's face. The mindlessness. Vacant contentment."
I currently have FIOS and recently have been too lazy to change and go through what you've described.
These companies piss me off so much that I'm considering having them absorbed. They rely on our laziness and the pain that they know it is to make the change. For example, most people have to take time off from work to accommodate the appointment schedules of the company you will be switching to.
Somebody recently told me that if you call up Cablevision and get an appointment for having them install their service at your house, you will get a confirmation number. Then, they said, you call FIOS and tell them the grim news. You have a Cablevision confirmation number, and give it to them. According to this person, FIOS will then, and only then, agree to treat you as a "new" customer and give you the triple play deal for two years (or whatever the term of contract is) for the low price.
I have not tried this yet, but after I finish my current heavy dose of communing, I think I will give this a try.
I assume it would be a similar deal if you have Cablevision (vice-versa) because these companies obviously copy each other.
--Landru
"Odd. The expression on that man's face. The mindlessness. Vacant contentment."
You're right about the retention reps offering you zilch when you threaten to leave. They don't consider it cost effective to retain you at the lower price. But after you switch, they mail you incessantly - sometimes sending multiple pieces weekly - asking you to come back at a new customer price. Makes absolutely no sense at all. The powers that be in the marketing departments at these telecoms are clueless.
Both FIOS and Cablevision did the mailings biweekly. The last time I switched from FIOS they called a couple of times during the year and even send a salesman to knock on my door 2X.
FIOS now (with me anyway) left all the equipment (pole to house box) and in the mailing says "since you still have all the equipment, reconnecting with FIOS is quick and easy and we can give you an even better rate".
As far as losing a day at work - they will setup on weekends.
I go thru this switch every time the promotional rates end - the $ savings is just too big to ignore, about $80 per month. The work for the installer is minimal as all the pole to house stuff and all the house cables are still there from previous. All they have to do is bring in the modem and the cable boxes for each TV.
A piece of info that can save you bucks you don't know you are spending: the older cable boxes use about 60 watts per box. That comes out to power co to over 500 kWh/year or over $100 per year per box.
Newer boxes (Cablevision uses Samsung), uses 18W which is less than 1/3 of the older boxes; when you switch you get the new boxes and you're saving around $70 per year per box.
PS. The power savings is negligible when you put the new box to standby (pressing the Cable button on the remote) so don't bother - it goes from 18W to 17.5W.
FIOS now (with me anyway) left all the equipment (pole to house box) and in the mailing says "since you still have all the equipment, reconnecting with FIOS is quick and easy and we can give you an even better rate".
As far as losing a day at work - they will setup on weekends.
I go thru this switch every time the promotional rates end - the $ savings is just too big to ignore, about $80 per month. The work for the installer is minimal as all the pole to house stuff and all the house cables are still there from previous. All they have to do is bring in the modem and the cable boxes for each TV.
A piece of info that can save you bucks you don't know you are spending: the older cable boxes use about 60 watts per box. That comes out to power co to over 500 kWh/year or over $100 per year per box.
Newer boxes (Cablevision uses Samsung), uses 18W which is less than 1/3 of the older boxes; when you switch you get the new boxes and you're saving around $70 per year per box.
PS. The power savings is negligible when you put the new box to standby (pressing the Cable button on the remote) so don't bother - it goes from 18W to 17.5W.
FIOS is doing something similar, like 65 for internet only. But if you want TV you have to do their stupid 'custom TV' package where you pay an extra $10 a month for sets of channels (sports, news, entertainment, etc). Really sucks, just wish I could choose which channels I wanted instead of paying $10 each for packs.
The situation of which one to pick is simple and hasn't changed over past 10 years for me: on the month before your anniversary date for expiration of the promotional rates (in my case it's about +$50/mo for standard package - I now pay $110/mo) you tell them you want to keep the current rates to continue with them; they say the best they can do is add a couple of extra channels; you tell them not acceptable and you are going to cancel on the anniversary date; they say sorry that's the best they can do and will miss you if you cancel; you setup and install with "the other guy"; you call up to cancel; they are "shocked, shocked that the previous sales guy was so insensitive" and what can they do to make things right; you tell them nothing - just cancel my service; you return the boxes and remotes (if Cablevision there is always a drop off place nearby, if Verizon they send you some prepaid mailing packages to use to send the stuff back).
repeat every 2 years, throw away the "we want you back" mailing they send every week, put up with the BS from the SO because many of the channel #'s have changed.
ps. don't bluff - I tried maybe 6 years ago with Cablevision to call up to cancel and they said ok and disconnected me from the service right after I hung up the phone. Part of their get tough policy then I guess - so since I don't know if they are still doing that the thing to do is to set up with the other guy, get up and running and then call to cancel.
repeat every 2 years, throw away the "we want you back" mailing they send every week, put up with the BS from the SO because many of the channel #'s have changed.
ps. don't bluff - I tried maybe 6 years ago with Cablevision to call up to cancel and they said ok and disconnected me from the service right after I hung up the phone. Part of their get tough policy then I guess - so since I don't know if they are still doing that the thing to do is to set up with the other guy, get up and running and then call to cancel.
Cablevision subscribers, including former ones, could benefit from a Class Action Settlement. The Settlement Class includes, subject to certain exceptions, all persons in NJ, CT, and NY who subscribed to Cablevision's video services and paid a monthly fee to Cablevision to lease a Set-Top Box at any time from April 30,2004 to March 9, 2016. Monetary awards range between $20 and $40, depending on the length of your service. Details are available here: www.cableboxsettlement.com or 1-888-760-4871.
Call them up today and answer the press # X question "to cancel service" — you will get very quickly to a live rep.
Tell them that you have been approached by Verizon with a deal that's hard to turn down. They will ask you how much and just say "I don't do that to people — telling them the other guys pricing — whether it's buying a car, signing up for fuel oil or my cable service. I'm sure you wouldn't want me doing that to you. What I need you to do is give me your best deal that both keeps you in business and keeps me satisfied with paying for what I am getting" (please guys reword this a bit so it does all seem the same"
They will come back with a price to which you will say "thanks but that doesn't cut it — you have to be lower" and they will come back with a lower price.
Then call up the newspapers you get and do the press # X question "to cancel service — again you will get very quickly to a live rep.
Say " I get both you and the other guy" (if calling Newsday say Newsday and NYT and if NYT visa versa) and " I'm very happy with both of you but I can't afford it anymore and decided to drop yours". (I happen to get NYT, WSJ and ND but doesn't matter if you only get the one you are calling.)
Newsday cut my already low monthly rate down to mid 30's/mo, NYT cut theirs and when I said "sorry can't afford it - do you have an educators rate?" (They will give you the educator's rate if you are an educator or someone in you family is an educatoror you know an educator or you can spell the word educator) I get NYT per month less than Newsday.
After you have done this all, put the money you have saved each month into a special "monger account" When things open up again (both the economy and your provider's legs) you will have a nice bucket of cash to monger with.
Ps. Never fall for the "convenient automatic renewal" for anything you subscribe to. You will only get the best rate when they think you aren't going to renew.
Tell them that you have been approached by Verizon with a deal that's hard to turn down. They will ask you how much and just say "I don't do that to people — telling them the other guys pricing — whether it's buying a car, signing up for fuel oil or my cable service. I'm sure you wouldn't want me doing that to you. What I need you to do is give me your best deal that both keeps you in business and keeps me satisfied with paying for what I am getting" (please guys reword this a bit so it does all seem the same"
They will come back with a price to which you will say "thanks but that doesn't cut it — you have to be lower" and they will come back with a lower price.
Then call up the newspapers you get and do the press # X question "to cancel service — again you will get very quickly to a live rep.
Say " I get both you and the other guy" (if calling Newsday say Newsday and NYT and if NYT visa versa) and " I'm very happy with both of you but I can't afford it anymore and decided to drop yours". (I happen to get NYT, WSJ and ND but doesn't matter if you only get the one you are calling.)
Newsday cut my already low monthly rate down to mid 30's/mo, NYT cut theirs and when I said "sorry can't afford it - do you have an educators rate?" (They will give you the educator's rate if you are an educator or someone in you family is an educatoror you know an educator or you can spell the word educator) I get NYT per month less than Newsday.
After you have done this all, put the money you have saved each month into a special "monger account" When things open up again (both the economy and your provider's legs) you will have a nice bucket of cash to monger with.
Ps. Never fall for the "convenient automatic renewal" for anything you subscribe to. You will only get the best rate when they think you aren't going to renew.
I usually switch on a yearly basis solely for who has the best internet only deal. I did a 64.99 per month for life deal with cablevision recently because my town has a franchise agreement with Cablevision. I use pluto tv (free), youtube tv (54.99) or hulu (5.99), disney+ (read: espn) instead of standard basic because its usually on a cost basis cheaper. More money for investing, hobby, etc., etc.
Timed out on last post:
. This is true whether it is your gym, magazines — anything. If they insist, i.e. it's the only way to get the best rate, when the higher rate kicks in call them and follow steps above. Make sure the renegotiated rate is retroactive (they will 1st say it starts next billing cycle)
. This is true whether it is your gym, magazines — anything. If they insist, i.e. it's the only way to get the best rate, when the higher rate kicks in call them and follow steps above. Make sure the renegotiated rate is retroactive (they will 1st say it starts next billing cycle)
I have Fios was thinking of going Optimum, due to more TV channels for the same price. Both too expensive as we need 4 TVs. My In laws recently switched to Optimum. Customer service is non existent. One of their boxes broke during this, they can't get any resolution at all. I know there is a pandemic, but nothing. I called 2x for them, call dropped after 45 minutes on hold both times, no exaggeration. I tried their Virtual agent, scripted would not allow a box exchange. To me that makes the product unusable. They are switching back to FiOS as soon as possible.