The non conformer's Canadian Weblog

January 18, 2010

So much for any promised Consumer protection.. Advertising Standards Canada

 

 
 

 Canada’s telcos such as Bell  are at a clear disadvantage in the battle with the cable companies, for internet speeds as well, cable firms  have modern coaxial cable networks that support greater bandwidth use than the phone companies’ too common mostly copper wire and so in overcoming this Bell resorts to lies, false misleading advertisements for years now too.
 
Even Bell has been clearly  guilty of false misleading adverting with regard to their network reliability and speed the last decade and what only know it is coming to the surface, and why did it takes so long even?
 

The Advertising Standards Canada

It clearly now seems the Advertising Standards Canada itself is guilty of false, misleading advertising when it promises to deal adequately, quickly with the complaints presented to them.
 
 https://thenonconformer.wordpress.com/2008/11/18/deceptive-unacceptable-unfair-business-trade-practices-unreliable-internet-access/
 https://thenonconformer.wordpress.com/2008/07/13/misapplications-of-the-laws-in-canada/
 
 “Re: Decision Bell Canada Advertisement-Canada’s most reliable network
… concerning the above referenced bell Advertisement.. the advertisement or part of the advertisement is presently the subjection of litigation (Or other legal action) undertaken in Canada… because of this the council will not accept or proceed further with this complaint.. Danielle Lefrancois Communications Manager Advertising Standards Canada 2015 peel street suite 915, Montreal Quebec H3A1T8  WWW.ADSTANDARDS.COM
  
WHAT EVERYONE IS AFRAID TO TAKE ON BIG BAD BELL?  WHY?
https://thenonconformer.wordpress.com/2010/01/09/public-mobile-files-suit-against-globalive-decision-supported-by-bell-rogers-telus-too/

 http://picasaweb.google.com/anonconformer/Thenonconformer#

Compared to Europeans speeds Canadian ISP are slow..  we’re still way behind most civilized nations when it comes to connectivity pricing and infrastructure.  https://thenonconformer.wordpress.com/2010/01/18/so-much-for-any-promised-consumer-protecton/

 Bell’s misleading spin advertising of their new diet is high in fibre  is still mere scrap bones to the dogs cause it does not apply to the majority of users.. not for even a decade.. they are promising to serve better their new customers while they are seriously bleeding away still their old customers.. Bell is always a misleading advertising  approach. In Ontario, Bell is also feeling pressure from rival Rogers, which has been offering 50-megabit download speeds and  in Quebec   cable provider Videotron began offering download speeds of 50 megabits two years ago. Videotron has 100 Mb/s speed almost everywhere(95-99%) on its network  Since 2006, Vidéotron has added more TV and broadband subscribers in Quebec than Bell; and since it launched residential phone service through its cable connections in 2005, it has gained 30 per cent of that market, Bell has to do a lot of work on its infrastructure. Do you know that there are residents withing 50 km of Ottawa, supposedly our nations capital and Canada’s Silicone Valley, that do not have access to high speed internet service. I can only imagine what it is like in a truly rural setting.

“I used to pay for 6 Mb/s on Sympatico HSE, and firstly got  about 350kb/s, and  I could write a book on my dealings with bad lying Bell in this regard”… Bell now Fibe is fiber to your neighbourhood node, then VDSL2 to your house. It offers download speeds of 25Mps maximum, but is more often 5 to 10Mps. Your still paying Bell for what was promised but not being delivered to you mostly. Bell, of the 4 major providers, is typically the slowest of the bunch as it is. So by & large, they’re likely only to be matching the speeds of their other competitors rather than making any significant headway above the crowd.  “Now the only thing moving faster at Bell is rate increases, customer dissatisfaction, and throttling, you know that little thing that has you pay for high speed Internet, and delivers dial up speed, all with the Canadian governments blessing. ABB (Anything But Bell)”
A comparison of Quebec market share between Vidéotron Ltée and Bell (including Aliant)

Quebec TV market: Vidéotron 62 per cent; Bell 21 per cent.

Residential broadband

Internet: Vidéotron 51 per cent; Bell 38 per cent

Residential telephone:

Vidéotron 30 per cent; Bell 62 per cent 

 http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/bce-digs-in-to-win-quebec-customers/article1456916/

Vancouver-based internet provider Novus Entertainment also announced on Thursday it was boosting speeds, up to a whopping 200 megabits.

 I hate Bell almost as much as I hate Rogers and Telus What good is a higher bandwidth when the companies cap the amount you’re allowed to download?  All the “theoretical” speed in the world means squat when they throttle it all to hell anyways. Oh and don’t forget the 60 gig cap … so … you can blow through your monthly limit in an hour or so …   it doesn’t mean squat when you cant even max it out for more than an hour before you hit your unbelievably download limit and have to pay an arm and a leg for what the rest of the world gets for free. If your also not within 300 meters of the remote that offers these speeds than your back to 7 meg (though your paying for 20) I really wish the competition bureau would say something about this illegal advertising   Remember, you can’t spell Bell without bill and you can’t spell hell without Bell ;  And those fake “fibre” services are only in certain areas from Bell right now. If you don’t live in an area over 1 mill your back to world lagging best effort 3 meg service. Now  most Bell internet customers have a theoretical speed of 7 megabits. Actually customer speeds are “up to 7 megabits”, and usually far less than 1 megabit. And, don’t forget about throttling that Bell engages in.I avoid Bell at every opportunity. The questionable business practices and the call centre in New Delhi are two good reasons to avoid these clowns.  I abandoned Bell 3 years ago – they have lost a customer in internet, TV, cell phone and landline service – after horrendous customer service. May they perish!   http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/02/04/bell-broadband-internet-speeds.html

Bell Sympatico AND Why I Quit Them Posted on January 17, 2010 by Gregory West  Do yourself a favour and switch to Cable Internet RIGHT NOW…I was an original Bell Sympatico High Speed customer from DAY ONE, well in excess of a decade. Two months ago I finally had enough of their TECH HELP employees guessing, lying and hanging up on me. But the most important reason I quit Bell is that they kept lowering my High Speed (throttling down is the term). They said the didn’t do it but when I phoned (several times on the same issue) and complained that my Internet connection was soooooooooooo sloooooooooow…They said they would boost it up and it would take 24 hours…Guess what? As soon as I hung up my Internet speed was back up to the regular speed of Bell. It was my son-in-law (who works for a local cable Internet company) who suggested I test drive cable Internet…Guess what? I found that cable Internet is 3 times faster than Bell and I have yet to have ANY problems with the cable company.  http://en.wordpress.com/tag/bell-canada/

an Abusive Relationship, or, Why I Hate Bell Canada I had a very tiny question to ask Bell Canada last week — I mean really trivial. My phone number had changed because of some harassing calls and I was unclear whether this would affect how I paid my Bell bill over the Internet. Easy question. One that you would think is actually fairly common. So I called Customer Service, which in the land of Bell Canada, means a journey down some dark and twisty roads. First off: put on hold, which is never promising. And then after speaking with five agents, being dropped not once but twice, and wasting 65 minutes of my life, not to mention the emotional trauma of becoming volcanically angry, I got an answer to my friggin’ question. A bit of context. In the decades I have dealt with Bell Canada, I have called Customer Service maybe five times. And every time it has been the same story of ignorance, evasion and nonanswers. I cannot remember a pleasant, easy conservation with any Bell Canada service agent. I’m positive Bell Canada pisses off hundreds of customers daily. For how many is speaking to Customer Service agents the end of the line, so to speak ? For me it was. Bell Canada, I have put up with your condescension, your arrogance and your crap for 27 years. I kept thinking it would get better, but it hasn’t. And then I finally figured it out. We do not have a relationship of mutual respect. Our relationship consists of you abusing me, and me taking it and coming back asking for more. It is the classic relationship of the abuser and abused. And guess what, Bell Canada? You aren’t a monopoly anymore. I don’t have to take it. I quit. I quit you and all your works. I know you don’t care if I go over to the competition. There are plenty more sheep. But I hope other people do in thousands and hundreds of thousands until you get the message: your customers need to be treated with respect. Because we won’t keep coming back. http://torontoemerg.wordpress.com/2009/10/24/ending-an-abusive-relationship-or-why-i-hate-bell-canada/Hubby

and I finally did it – we cancelled our satellite subscription. November 18h to be exact. Our 3 year mandatory term was up and with much research we knew we could save a few bucks each month by switching to cable. We also knew that our reception would be so much better – no interference, disruptions and total blackouts whenever a snow storm was about or, in fact, right in our own backyard. Not to mention cleaning off black ice from our receiver in the wee hours of the evening! Our account with Bell Satellite would end on the 4th of December but with 30 days notice we would be disconnected on December 18th. During our research we had also realized that our Bell account (satellite, internet and home phone) had increased $20.00 a month over this past year alone.   Trust me, that telephone call with Bell was like pulling teeth in trying to get them to reduce or delete one of their “theme packages”. We were at least able to reduce our monthly bill by about $13.00 and more than willing to take what we could get.   http://canyadigit.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/please-ma-bell-when-will-it-end/

Telus, Rogers and Bell: Are You Listening?  15 01 2010  From MacRumors: Responding to price cuts from Verizon, AT&T today rolled out new unlimited plans for all devices on its network, including the iPhone. Under the new plans taking effect on Monday, iPhone customers can sign up for unlimited voice and data for $99.99 per month, although texting packages remain separate for an additional fee. The unlimited voice and data plan represents a $30 discount from the previous unlimited plan for the iPhone. All smartphone customers, including iPhone customers, may now buy unlimited voice and data for $99.99. For smartphone customers with Family Talk plans (prices assume 2 smartphones), unlimited voice and data is now available for $179.99. Texting plans remain unchanged at $20 for unlimited plans for individuals, $30 for Family Talk Plans. Existing customers will be permitted to change to the new plans as of Monday via AT&T’s website, with no monetary penalty or extension to contract terms. It is unclear at this time whether there will be any adjustment to AT&T’s non-unlimited plans to reposition its pricing tiers in relation to the new, lower unlimited price. http://thisdayinfuturehistory.wordpress.com/2010/01/15/telus-rogers-and-bell-are-you-listening/

It is ironic that the courts were asked by Telus to do it to Rogers and that a few days after the negative decision evidenced above, Rogers undertook a suit against such claims by Bell Canada. Does this mean that the telecom companies in Canada know that they are all second class, like the Berkman report clearly proved! http://robertg69.wordpress.com/2009/12/03/and-its-about-time-that-rogers-wireless-should-be-taken-down-a-notch-or-2/

 Does Bell Canada still pay news reporters and lawyers to lie about how good Bell is?
 
PRINCE.EDWARD.ISLAND (CBC) – Bell Aliant is squaring off against Rogers Communications Inc. in a New Brunswick court over what it says are misleading advertisements touting the speed and reliability of Rogers internet service.  Bell Aliant filed a claim Monday in the New Brunswick Court of Queen’s Bench in Fredericton alleging that Rogers’s assertion that its internet service is faster and more reliable than that of other providers is false. Bell Aliant, which operates in the Atlantic provinces and parts of Ontario and Quebec, is asking the court for an immediate injunction to stop Rogers from making those claims in its advertisements. Last year, Bell Aliant announced it would spend $60 million to outfit 70,000 homes and businesses in Fredericton and Saint John with fibre optic technology by mid-2010. In 1996, New Brunswick was where Bell Aliant tested its high-speed internet service before rolling it out elsewhere. Regardless of what the ads say, everyone has their own preference when it comes to internet providers. Bell Aliant customer Oliver Dueck said he’s tried both Bell and Rogers. “Previously, I was a Rogers customer for a while, and then when I moved to my new home, I switched to Bell Aliant simply because it was faster,” he said. Matthew Valentini, a computer consultant in Fredericton, said the war of words between Bell and Rogers is just that. “Both companies are currently selling internet connections that are faster than their networks in New Brunswick can support. So, they’re just using that number to entice you into purchasing their services,” Valentini said. “The latest claim is that Rogers no longer has the fastest and most reliable network. In fact, I would think both companies’ reliability is well up to consumer standards, and I would not see that as something to worry about.” Bell Aliant isn’t the first to take on Rogers over advertising claims. Telus sued Rogers in a similar case recently and won. http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/cbc/100216/canada/canada_newbrunswick_nb_bell_aliant_rogers_internet
 

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

%d bloggers like this: