Verizon Continues To Screw Their Customers, And We Continue To Let Them. AKA Wireless Options In South Dakota

Ok, I'll admit it, writing a blog about technology in South Dakota is pretty much an exercise in futility. Technology and South Dakota could be the Webster's definition of oxymoron much in the same vein as "Government Intelligence".

So with that in mind it would have probably taken quite a big issue for me to resurrect this blog from its 18 month hiatus Verizon Wireless have provided that issue.

For some perspective, I have never been much of a fan of "Big Red". They have some of the most expensive plans in the US, they have arguably the worst selection of smart phones of any of the big 4, their network technology, CDMA, means any phone you buy from them is stuck on their network, and their lockdown on certain apps (i.e. Google Wallet) and slow to non-existent software update schedule is notorious among cell phone enthusiasts.

With all those minuses, why would anyone most of all me, choose Verizon in the first place? Here in South Dakota it can be summed up in one word, choices. We have very few of them.

Verizon's network in our state is unbeatable. We have 4G in most metropolitan areas and even much of our rural areas are seeing the wonderful "4G" icon these days. After Verizon our choices drop off considerably.

AT&T has finally come to South Dakota after getting Alltel's assets from Verizon and has good coverage in the state but no 4G. Sprint works up and down I29 but go West and they don't exist and T-Mobile's "nationwide coverage" apparently doesn't consider South Dakota part of the nation because they don't even have a retail presence in the here. So unless you live in Sioux Falls and never leave the city you must choose between AT&T and their 3G coverage or Verizon's 4G network.

So now we can fast forward to Verizon's not so customer friendly plan changes.

I am sure everyone was aware of the first big change a couple of years ago when they did away with unlimited data, you know that new plan that charged you the same $30 for 2gb of data that you used to pay for unlimited. Well in the 2 years since that change, the plan has since morphed into the "Family Share" plan that takes that same 2gb of data and charges you $60 bucks to use it (but at least now you can share it right?).

And finally in recent days, Verizon has announced 2 new changes that defy explanation, at least in my mind. The first change deals with how Verizon handles upgrades.

For years Verizon customers have been under 2 year contracts that were renewed each time you purchased a subsidized phone. Under those contracts though, you became eligible to purchase a new subsidized phone after only 20 months effectively meaning you were under a 20 month contract.

Beginning with customers whose contract end date is after January 1st, the 20 month upgrade date will be changed to 24 months to match the contract end date. On paper this change doesn't mean much more than we must now wait an extra 4 months to get a subsidized phone, you know one more poke in the rear to Verizon customers.

But then I started thinking about this, upgrading at 20 months means that Verizon had the opportunity to lock in the customer to another 2 year (20 month) contract at a point when the customer was still locked into Verizon. If your 20 month old phone is showing it's age, Verizon would be happy to help you out.

Now, that same phone is 4 month's older but this time your contract with Verizon is up. They have no hold over you and you are free to look at other carriers and MVNO's and in the process of shopping around you are very likely to discover that Verizon's pricing/services aren't all that you thought that they were. Why do this?

Next on the Verizon hit parade we have their response to T-Mobile's new plans that don't include phone subsidies and instead allow you to finance the full price of the phone over a period of months. These new plans from T-Mobile come with cheaper prices to take into the account that no subsidies are involved.

Verizon, not one to let a competitor dominate the news cycle has also announced that starting April 21st you can now also have a new unsubsidized phone worth over $350 any time you want and they will allow you to pay for it over 12 months. The difference being Verizon will charge you $24 and also not offer a cheaper plan.

Quite the win/win for Verizon and another take it in the shorts moment for their customers other than those looking to keep their doomed unlimited data plans just a bit longer.

As you might have gathered by my somewhat incoherent rant to this point, I've had it with Verizon. You may have also surmised that while Verizon is horrible, South Dakotan's have very few options.

3G/4G issues aside, AT&T isn't any cheaper and customer service wise they may even be worse than Verizon. Sprint and T-Mobile are not options which leaves us with MVNO's (mobile virtual network operator) like StraightTalk, Virgin Mobile, etc. which lease wireless spectrum from the big boys and then resell them to their customers at often much cheaper prices.

At one time, StraightTalk was a viable option here. In fact for a while last year I tried them out with an unlocked Galaxy Nexus and was quite pleased with the price, $45 a month for unlimited talk/text/data, and their coverage (AT&T network). I eventually gave up on them because of issues I had with their so-called unlimited data which was far from unlimited but if you can live with their data restrictions they were perfect.

You might have noticed that I precluded my StraightTalk commentary with the phrase "at one time". The MVNO option for any potential customer is predicated on the availability of the networks from the big 4 that they lease spectrum from. Some of the best options for MVNO's are companies that lease spectrum from T-Mobile and Sprint and if you remember from earlier in this piece, those 2 companies are pretty much non-starters in South Dakota. StraightTalk in particular recently put an exclamation point on that fact when they stopped offering AT&T SIM cards taking away one of our few good options.

So there you have it in a nutshell. Verizon tempts you to change carriers with the changes in upgrade dates knowing you probably won't even consider it. They raise prices, limit features and upgrades of their phones, and then nickel and dime you to death with fees all with the knowledge that most of us will just grin and bear it.

And to make matters worse, those of us in South Dakota couldn't do much even if we wanted to.

Rapid City Going 4G

Verizon Wireless has just announced their latest round of markets scheduled to get their 4G service and Western South Dakotan's should be happy to hear that Rapid City has made the list.

On or before November 17th Verizon will flip the 4G switch on the following markets:

Appleton, WI
Des Moines, IA
Cedar Rapids, IA
Lincoln, NB
Rapid City, SD
Kansas City, MO
Springfield and Branson, MO
Orange County, NY (Newburgh, Montgomery, Middletown, etc.)
Roanoke, VA
Greater Providence
Lexington, KY
Little Rock, AK
Savannah, GA

5 other markets will be expanding at the same time though unfortunately Sioux Falls isn't one of them so I will still be missing out on the 4G love at the old homestead by a mere 10 miles or so...

Happy Birthday World Wide Web!

Today marks a significant day in the history of the internet. 20 years ago on August 6th 1991 Tim Berners-Lee published the first Web page on a server at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research. The page, viewed on the Berners-Lee developed  web browser called WorldWideWeb was met with little fanfare but 20 years later one might wonder what life would be like without Berners-Lee's creation.

Berners-Lee's 1990 concept for what would eventually become the World Wide Web:

HyperText is a way to link and access information of various kinds as a web of nodes in which the user can browse at will. It provides a single user-interface to large classes of information (reports, notes, data-bases, computer documentation and on-line help). We propose a simple scheme incorporating servers already available at CERN.

The project has two phases: firstly we make use of existing software and hardware as well as implementing simple browsers for the user's workstations, based on an analysis of the requirements for information access needs by experiments. Secondly, we extend the application area by also allowing the users to add new material.

Phase one should take 3 months with the full manpower complement, phase two a further 3 months, but this phase is more open-ended, and a review of needs and wishes will be incorporated into it.

The manpower required is 4 software engineers and a programmer, (one of which could be a Fellow). Each person works on a specific part (eg. specific platform support).

Each person will require a state-of-the-art workstation , but there must be one of each of the supported types. These will cost from 10 to 20k each, totalling 50k. In addition, we would like to use commercially available software as much as possible, and foresee an expense of 30k during development for one-user licences, visits to existing installations and consultancy.

We will assume that the project can rely on some computing support at no cost: development file space on existing development systems, installation and system manager support for daemon software.

Spotify Launches In The US

The latest music streaming service to hit the US has opened it doors this morning. Spotify, already a popular choice in Europe, is a service that lets users stream unlimited music on demand to your PC, Mac, or cell phone, and also build and share playlists. What makes Spotify different from some of the other options out there such as Pandora and Slacker is that you can search for and play specific tracks and even import your own MP3's which means you aren't necessarily a slave to the service's algorithm.

Where Spotify falls short though in my opinion is their availability. The free ad supported option and even the $4.99/mo unlimited plans do not allow you to stream to your mobile device (sync only) which will still make the other services a better option for some. That convenience will cost you $9.99 a month.

Hello America. Spotify here.

Spotify, the largest and fastest growing music service of its kind, is available from today in the US. We’re massively excited to be here.

Spotify is a new way to manage your music, discover new tracks and share songs and playlists with your friends. Now you can enjoy music whenever and wherever you like.

More than 10 million Europeans can’t be wrong, surely?

OK, so they are wrong when it comes to spelling ‘favourite’ and ‘doughnut’. But they know a great music service when they see it.

Spotify was launched in Sweden in 2008 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon, out of a desire to develop a better, more convenient and legal alternative to music piracy. Spotify is now the second single largest source of digital music revenue for labels in Europe (IFPI, April 2011), making sure that artists get a fair deal.

Spotify has more than 10 million registered users and more than 1.6 million paying subscribers across 7 countries in Europe; the US marks the 8^th territory. With a ratio of well over 15% paying subscribers to active free users, Spotify is the largest and fastest growing service of its kind.

One lean, green, music machine

• Spotify gives you on-demand access (with no buffering) to a library of more than 15 million songs. What’s more, you can import the MP3s you already own with just one click, to create a mighty music player. And with Spotify, there’s no need to skip tracks you don’t like. Why? Because you choose the music in the first place.

• It’s super simple to create and manage all your playlists with Spotify – our users have made and shared over 250 million of them so far. You can also discover the most popular playlists on sites like www.sharemyplaylists.comand www.bbcify.com, or use clever sites like www.spotiseek.com to create playlists of new music based on your favorite artists.

• Music is made for sharing. Simply drag and drop music to your Spotify friends, or share with them via Facebook, Twitter, email and SMS. See your friends’ top tracks, artists and playlists via their Spotify profiles, subscribe to their playlists and drop tracks into their Spotify inbox. How very sociable.

• Take your music with you by installing Spotify on your cellphone or iPod Touch. Wirelessly sync your MP3 playlists to listen offline and subscribe to Spotify Premium to combine your own music with access to our catalogue of over 15 million tracks. It’s the perfect music player.

The Land of the Free, the Unlimited and the Premium

During our invite-only beta phase, Spotify offers three great services, from absolutely free to paid subscriptions. All of Spotify’s services include the features listed above.

• Spotify Free – the unsurpassed free music service. With an invite, enjoy on-demand, buffer-free access to over 15 million songs on your computer, great social features, manage your own music files through Spotify, and sync with your cellphone or iPod. Features occasional advertising.

• Spotify Unlimited – all the special features of our free service but with uninterrupted, ad-free access to Spotify on your computer. All for only $4.99 a month.

• Spotify Premium – the all-singing, all-dancing, top-of-the-range Spotify experience. Premium gives you access to all the music, all the time. Listen online or offline, on your computer, your cellphone and a whole heap of other devices. Enjoy enhanced sound quality and access to exclusive content, competitions and special offers. Premium costs just $9.99 a month (that’s the equivalent of a few fancy coffees).

Daniel Ek, Founder and CEO of Spotify, said: “We believe that music is the most social thing there is and that’s why we’ve built the best social features into Spotify for easy sharing and the ultimate in music discovery. Even if you aren’t a total music freak, chances are you have a friend who is and whose taste you admire. I’m looking forward to connecting with some of you in Spotify and discovering some cool new tracks.”

Spotify’s US launch is in partnership with some of the biggest and most pioneering brands in the world, who want to help us spread the word of Spotify in the USA. Our exclusive launch partners are Coca-Cola and Sprite, Chevrolet, Motorola, Reebok, Sonos and The Daily. These brands will all be launching innovative campaigns in partnership with Spotify in the coming weeks and months.

Ken Parks, Chief Content Officer and Managing Director of Spotify North America, said: “Spotify was founded as a better, simpler alternative to piracy. So making sure that the people who create the music prosper is hugely important to us. We have full catalogues from all the major labels and a raft of independent labels including those represented by Merlin, which means all of their artists are being fairly compensated for their creativity every time people enjoy music through Spotify.”

The free plan is still invitation only but if you just can't wait, signing up for the Unlimited or Premium plans will give you immediate access. 

Now That's A Price Hike Netflix!

Ok, I understand costs are rising everywhere and that price hikes are inevitable but raising them in some cases up to 60% in one fell swoop?

For those that were unaware, Netflix announced yesterday that it was revamping its plans which among other things removed streaming from their standard DVD plans making it a separate add on starting on September 1st.

Netflix's love letter from my inbox:

Dear Robert,

We are separating unlimited DVDs by mail and unlimited streaming into two separate plans to better reflect the costs of each. Now our members have a choice: a streaming only plan, a DVD only plan, or both.

Your current $11.99 a month membership for unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs (including Blu-ray access) will be split into 2 distinct plans:

Plan 1: Unlimited Streaming (no DVDs) for $7.99 a month
Plan 2: Unlimited DVDs (including Blu-ray), 1 out at-a-time (no streaming)
for $9.99 a month

Your price for getting both of these plans will be $17.98 a month ($7.99 + $9.99). You don't need to do anything to continue your memberships for both unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs.

These prices will start for charges on or after September 1, 2011.

You can easily change or cancel your unlimited streaming plan, unlimited DVD plan, or both, by going to the Plan Change page in Your Account.

We realize you have many choices for home entertainment, and we thank you for your business. As always, if you have questions, please feel free to call us at 1-888-357-1516.

–The Netflix Team


To say I am unhappy is an understatement but to say I am going to cancel completely is not something I am ready to say yet at least until I hear more from Netflix on what if any improvements come along with this massive hike. But if the 1000's of comments I am seeing on Neflix's blog and Facebook page are any indication, many other people have already decided.

Obviously any price hike is going to be met by some sort of backlash and this is a free market society so Netflix can do whatever they wish but I am wondering if they were actually prepared for this huge of a wave of negative comments?

As for me, I have a month and a half to figure out what I am going to do as I am having a hard time swallowing the idea of paying $18 on September 1st for the same level of service I was getting for $12 on August 31st. Right now I would have to say that unless Netflix improves their streaming service to include more new releases between now and then, my already limited entertainment budget will be spent elsewhere.

HTC/Verizon Shafts Us Poor Thunderbolt Owners Once Again

Ok, not only do Thunderbolt owners still have to put up with piss poor battery life, crappy GPS performance, and the ever present re-booting issues, we now find out that the HTC Droid Incredible 2 is poised to receive Gingerbread (aka Android 2.3) before the supposed flagship Verizon 4G phone. You know the handset that was released over a month earlier than the refreshed non-4G and $50 cheaper Incredible.

Of course I have long since given up waiting for the long ago promised T-Bolt Gingerbread update from Verizon which was supposed to be released last quarter and have moved on to BAMF's wonderful Sense 3.0 ROM on my rooted T-Bolt but I think we can now officially say that HTC and Verizon have totally ruined what could have been an awesome phone.

So while the T-Bolt continues to languish in Verizon hell, I hope all you Incredible 2 users, my wife included, enjoy your soon to be Gingerbread infused phone.

UPDATE: I guess Thunderbolt users aren't being left completely out of the loop. Droid Life has details of a T-Bolt update being pushed out as early as tonight that hopes to fix the random re-booting issue they likely caused or made worse with their last update. It also includes a few more items but obviously, no Gingerbread.

Oh, and if you are rooted, it is suggested that you do not accept this update.

Unhappy With Verizon? Now May Be Your Chance To Leave Them

The Consumerist writes today that a small $.03 increase in a regulatory fee that Verizon plans to implement on July 1st could be your chance to get out of your contract with Verizon without being charged their "early termination fee" which could save you up to $350 per line.

They claim that the fee increase from $.13 to $.16 falls under the "materially adverse change of contract" clause in the agreement you signed the last time you renewed.

From Verizon's customer agreement:

Can Verizon Wireless Change This Agreement or My Service?

We may change prices or any other term of your Service or this agreement at any time,but we'll provide notice first, including written notice if you have Postpay Service. If you use your Service after the change takes effect, that means you're accepting the change. If you're a Postpay customer and a change to your Plan or this agreement has a material adverse effect on you, you can cancel the line of Service that has been affected within 60 days of receiving the notice with no early termination fee.

Now I am guessing there will not be many takers here in South Dakota as our choices for a Verizon replacement aren't the greatest but if you have been looking to leave, this may be your chance as long as you act within 60 days of the fee implementation. The post over at the Consumerist has all the details as well as some helpful stories from those using similar situations to terminate their contracts early.