Legacy DSL support ending July 31?

[spencerw]

Yes, similar issue. Received an email- Legacy ADSL is ending- upgrade, which apparently(?) isn't available here, then got an email saying service would be extended due to the pandemic, but nothing more.

Sent an email to Sonic support seeking clarification/confirmation, which has yet to be answered, aside from the automated response.

Absolutely hate needing go to Suddenlink as an ISP, despite its basic service costing less and proposed speed being around 30x my current rate. Not in any way a power user anymore, so don't need much bandwidth, but despise Suddenlink, their practices, and being forced to pay for the privilege.

Little to no other option.

R~

I was able to find your email and I have responded to it. Please send a return email if you have any additional questions or concerns!

[dane]

We emailed all Legacy DSL customers, retracting the product retirement plans.

That said, for many sites we do have upgrade options available. See connections at https://members.sonic.net/ for availability and details.

[macguyver]

We emailed all Legacy DSL customers, retracting the product retirement plans.

That said, for many sites we do have upgrade options available. See connections at https://members.sonic.net/ for availability and details.

Dane, et al...

I know we are still not out of the "pandemic woods" but many of us on Legacy services are sweating what may happen (and how quickly) when this process is resumed.

Big Question: With the new administration and FCC leadership is there any chance the "sunset" may be further delayed, halted or that our options may improve in these areas where AT&T is clearly trying to eliminate Legacy products while failing to offer alternative services and blocking Sonic/CLECs from access to customers?

I will now re-ask another question I have posed in the past:

What process or steps would be involved to help bring Sonic to our city, or any other in the Bay Area that is currently blocking your access? I had built a good list of potential customers a few years back but never received direction on how to move the needle on our end. There is a lot of frustration and even hatred for ATT/Comcast as one can imagine. A neighbor with Comcast regularly schedules a call to fight with a phone agent until they finally give him a "discount" on his bill which will still be higher than he paid 1-2 years prior after raising his blood pressure to the same cause. The company regularly pushes him into service/hardware upgrades, inaccurately claiming his current plan or equipment does not serve his needs.

Around my neighborhood AT&T dropped 1 gig fiber lines in recent years, but no Sonic option. I am told that our city is one of those in which Sonic can no longer compete (ie. Fremont, Pacifica, etc.) despite the Telecom Act of 1996. Interestingly, AT&T left many here with out upgrades, in some cases high density areas. I can literally walk 2 blocks in either direction and get 1 gig fiber, as opposed to many streets that were down-graded to 1.5 Mbit internet-only at $55 + tax/fees. No joke. The region was developed at roughly the same time, all above ground wiring on poles, all in similar condition, and many streets that DO have 1g fiber are dead-end hill routes with about 1/4 the number of structures (ie. customers). In most places 1.5 Mbit is the only option except for Comcast. So, for households with students and/or parents working from home during COVID-19 there is no choice. And we have seen how ineffective Comcast Internet Essentials is for households during the pandemic.

A few years back I was checking service options for a neighbor and was offered AT&T's incredible 1.5 Mbit DSL. I asked why 6 Mbit was not available, and the phone agent informed me it was "technically impossible" to have it at this location. When I mentioned my own active 6 Mbit Sonic DSL dropped from the same pole, they did not believe it was real.

This is how AT&T and large corporations work... fervently deny the existence of something and it ceases to exist. The phone agent was only working off what their screen told them. So therefore, my Sonic 6 Mbit line could not exist. I do not know how long ago AT&T started this campaign in our area, but that would be when you stopped getting contacted by potential customers.

If any of the above is not clear, I have been and continue to be a willing community advocate. I have urged numerous households to try Sonic and have a good success rate with my clients and contacts in the Bay Area. I am sure those of us in under-served areas could work towards getting community and city government support for Sonic inclusion, but not with out direction or tools to form a battle plan. Otherwise, we may as well go door-to-door selling parking spaces on the bay bridge.

The fact that I continue to pay over $66/mo for Sonic Legacy DSL, plus matching costs for an AT&T phone line to maintain service (despite price increases to both and no discounts since the first year) should be a clue to my commitment.

I believe in Sonic, but subsidizing its continued expansion with no options in the foreseeable future is wearing thin.

Thank you