Misleading marketing, or a Netflix moment?

[dane]

The fee is forever... if it at least sunsetted after two or three years... it would be easier to take.

So are the upgrades and support. We will advance-replace at no cost to you (we cover shipping both directions!) the equipment if we suspect it is bad, during the course of troubleshooting, for the life of the service.

Clearly, there is a cost - $6.50 each month. I'm hopeful that on balance, this turns out to be a good value.

[jeffg1]

Clearly, there is a cost - $6.50 each month. I'm hopeful that on balance, this turns out to be a good value.

You continue to dance around the main issue here, Dane. $46.50 may or not be a "good value," but most folks would accept it as reasonable. The real issue is that the advertized $39.95 monthly charge is knowingly false and deceptive.

All ot the rationalizations about grandfathering existing customers, taxes, extra services, etc. may or may not justify a separate $78 per year equipment rental, but they will never justify deceptive advertising.

Charge whatever you need to compete.

Just, please, drop the deception. Prove that you are not becoming just another word-parsing, footnote-obscuring would-be Comcast clone.

[dane]

@Jeffg1,

I hear you, but we've chosen not to include the cost of equipment in the service itself because without advertised pricing parity, consumers can't really fairly compare apples to apples in the broadband access market. As our two largest competitors have an equipment fee, we can't avoid it and remain on a level and fair playing field. Sorry.

(As an aside, if we include the equipment in the service fee, it becomes subject to some taxation, which is additional cost for the customer. Separation of the equipment fee avoids this. It's not a large amount, but avoiding unneccessary taxes when possible is a generally good.)

[Kevin L]

I was going to signup for Sonic just after my AT&T promotion expire, I was planning to stay with Sonic even after the 1st year promotion expired, because I just hate AT&T so much.
BUT!! what the hell is this $6.5 equipment rental fee, and I'm not even signing up for Fusion because Fusion is not available for Fusion service, then what am I paying this for? just another hidden cost for you to make up the profit?

I just hate the idea of "renting" any equipment from provider, it's a forever cost, might as well just raise my plan cost to cover it...

I guess business is tough...

[keyprod]

I too, was unhappy about the rental fee for the modem. I would rather take the one time hit and own the equipment, saving the money in the long run. It would be nice if Sonic would consider selling their configured version of the modem; that way they could still do remote updates and servicing, but customers would save that $6.50 per month in the long run.
I would certainly do that.
It seems like that would solve many of the concerns I'm reading about here.

That being said, I did indeed make the switch to Sonic. For starters, my AT&T service would drop out a lot, and I was regularly doing manual reboots of the modem and router. My speeds were coming in at the 3Mbps range (I live in an area with old lines). I would never go with Comcast; *F* those guys and their shitty service, I'd rather be homeless eating out of a garbage can <ahem>. So far my sonic service is great. They doubled my speed (again, crappy local lines), and there has yet to be a drop in service. Finally, even with the modem rental rate, I now pay less then I did for phone and U-verse with AT&T.

Sonic, please consider my earlier suggestion.

[write2otto]

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Cox- ... Fee-121791

Cox sued over set-top-box rental fee.

Sonic.net is probably not in the same category, and I don't have problems with the modem rental.

[Elisbet Y.]

For what it's worth, I'm stuck paying about as much as what everyone here is complaining about (the $46/month plus taxes range) for *JUST INTERNET* with Comcast (UGH) on a PROMO... and I don't even have phone service with them!

I was a happy, happy Sonic.net customer back when Dialup was like $20 or $30 a month in the late 90s. I was a happy, happy DSL customer for a long time in Santa Rosa, where basic 1.5Mbps DSL was over $40/month. I had that same DSL until I moved to a neighborhood in Rohnert Park with horrible, ancient phone lines that were so far from the hub (or whatever it is) that they were shocked when I managed download speeds over 1.4Mbps even with the Fusion service (Fusion was $40 + taxes then), and the connection fritzed out constantly. Eventually, I found out I needed higher, steadier speeds for some contract work I needed to do, and let's face it - we could hardly even stream video, the connection was so bad (not Sonic's fault, just old lines). I gave in, with a broken heart, and signed up for Comcast (which has been HELL ON EARTH ever since!). As for phone, I make due with a super-basic landline, since cell reception is also crap here.

Thing is, if I could have Fusion service - phone, long-distance, caller ID, AND super-fast internet - out here, I would happily pay $50+taxes. You WILL NOT find such a package cheaper in this area. Not at all! On top of that, having been physically and verbally intimidated and harassed by Comcast's technicians *in my own home*, you'd better believe I was longing for the days of those nice guys and gals at Sonic's support center. I recommended Sonic to my dear aunt who is not technically-savvy, not because it was the cheapest around (although technically it was), but because their customer support is hands-down the best I've ever experienced. I knew they'd take good care of her and be patient, and they have exceeded both of our expectations.

I don't like the idea of a modem rental, either, but as has been mentioned in another thread, they list it separately to try to save us (consumers) on taxes. Perhaps this could be explained better during the sign-up process, or perhaps people would feel more warm and fuzzy if it was just rolled into a higher price? Bah, consumer psychology. Now, I still don't know why that means I couldn't be allowed to purchase my own (provided it was from a compatible list, etc), but that's something that Sonic.net is going to need to hash out on a consumer satisfaction vs technical maintenance basis. For what it's worth, even Comcrap "allowed" me to use a modem I purchased specifically because it was on their list (after fighting tooth and nail, but it's allowed by their policy).

Bottom line: I'd kill to pay $46.50 + taxes to be back with Sonic.net again. I can't because of the quality of the lines here. Suck it up, guys... everyone else is ten thousand times worse, and they don't even bother answering your concerns on a personal basis, let alone in forums. Sonic's team truly seems to care about what their customers think, and they have for the 14 or so years I've done business with them. I have confidence that the Sonic team can find a mutually-beneficial solution to this issue.

[sacsound1]

Hi Folks,

I'm the original poster that started this thread. I ultimately decided to make the switch from ATT to Sonic.net fusion, and I want to add a few words about the experience.

I have had the service for a couple of months now, and I have to say I am happy that I made the change. The switch was completely painless, the tech/customer service was/is clear and professional, and I now have a faster connection for a lower price than what I had with ATT.

To address a few specific points in my original post:

I still don't like the rental fee concept, but ultimately it did not stop me from switching over. The total price per month now, even with the rental cost, is still around 6 bucks cheaper than what I was paying before. And my new connection speed is 4+ times faster (1.3 with ATT, almost 6.0 with Sonic). And no extra charges for regional and long-distance calling on my landline. And I do appreciate now that the rental fee is called out separately, as paying phone taxes on the rental fee would really chap my hide. That's a lot of "ands" but they add up to a lot of service.

One thing I didn't mention in the original post was the short timeframe of the change of policy to the rental plan. It seems to have been a 3 day window and I missed it. This after looking at the service off and on for a couple of months, thinking about it, and then deciding to do it. When I finally made the call to switch it was a couple of days after the change - I wasn't monitoring the web site so I didn't know it was happening. What was a great deal before turned into only a good deal almost overnight.

So a bit of my first post was from the point of view of someone who felt like they lost something, even though they didn't even have it yet. I didn't make the switch at that point, but after thinking about it for a while I decided (in a rare moment of pragmatism) I was still better off moving to fusion - even with the extra rental charge. I have not regretted it.

As a former ATT customer for many years I have to say that this was a good decision for me, despite having to pay for my procrastination. I'm better off (so far) in every way than with ATT.

I still hate the rental fee, though.

SAC

[happy Sonic customer]

I switched from ATT to Sonic a year ago, love the service. This is before the $6 rental fee, but even if I had tto pay for this, I still would make the switch.
To bad for those whining and stay with ATT, good luck to you.
How much you pay for the month internet? Is it more or less tha $46 a month?
How about just forgetting about this rental fee and considering $46 is the total cost, is it still godd compair to other providers?
How about no data caps? Is it a plus bonus?
How about great customer who walks you thru everytime ou call? Is it good?
How about being able to chat with the CEO on the forum? Is it good?
Are these bonuses worth extra $6 a month?

[Guest]

I have been an AT&T customer seemingly my entire life (first it was MaBell, PacBell, SBC, etc.) and for the most part, i've had clear phones and basic okay internet service. Also, very high bills and aggravating customer service. So, I've been talking to Sonic--alot. I really like their customer service and politics and I would not mind, too much, paying a ONE TIME MODEM FEE, even though I don't need it!...but a YEARLY FEE of $78??? I think that really stinks. And who is to say it won't increase. Ok...but they did it and so it's about $57/month total.
I really want to switch but AT&T will lower my internet down to $20/mth, my phone will be apprx. $30 (with their 2013 increase--cd be less with a measured rate if i want) and LD about $13...so we're at $63 instead of $57. A difference of five bucks and I wouldn't have to change any business cards, etc.......I'm really trying to move to Sonic but can someone give me a good solid reason? THANKS. I need to make a decision very soon.