Q2 2008: Product & Service Changes

[CountSessine]

What is that Unlimited MobileMail Messages?

God, when would they offer decent data plan packages?
Just for comparison, Philippines has about 50 million subscribers offering unlimited 3g internet for its subscribers, yet the network isnt saturated as some people make it out if ever Rogers offer decent unlimited plans. All their reasoning is just BS.

You're preaching to the choir here. Everyone here knows that Rogers' data plans are a terrible value for anyone but a tiny minority of users who have some sort of business use for them. These threads usually feature a dealer or two who makes a half-hearted attempt to apologize for/justify these rates, but they're Rogers customers too - and only a fool would really believe that these plans are a good value.

I think these plans are Rogers getting in their 'last gouge' before wireless services in canada improve. Data prices in the US were pretty bad too before they auctioned off their 1700/2100 MHz spectrum a few years ago. Here's hoping rogers is a lot less profitable at our expense next year this time.

[WorldIRC]

Here's how Rogers sees it. Their prices remain high and their customer base / profits keep increasing...for the time being...why lower prices? As long as demand is high and the supply is there, may as well charge all you can. As soon as the demand changes, Rogers, being the genius business they are will adjust their business model accordingly. Rogers, as a company is VERY smart and they know exactly what they are doing. Sure the consumer doesn't like it but Rogers is there to make money and they do an EXCELLENT job at what they do. Kudos to Rogers! I know that if I started a cellular company, I wouldn't be lowering my prices so that the users that post in the retention thread can be happy....especially if theres a chance that my profits will be minimalized! Maybe I'm playing devil's advocate but then business has been in my blood since the 9th grade.

As I always say about this industry, those that need it can afford it! Roger's is OBVIOUSLY not gearing the $100 data towards our retention thread members but towards businesses and corporations...those that usually have the money to pay for such luxuries. If a company can't afford $100 / month, I can't see how they can stay in business ANYWAYS.

[CountSessine]

Here's how Rogers sees it. Their prices remain high and their customer base / profits keep increasing...for the time being...why lower prices? As long as demand is high and the supply is there, may as well charge all you can. As soon as the demand changes, Rogers, being the genius business they are will adjust their business model accordingly. Rogers, as a company is VERY smart and they know exactly what they are doing. Sure the consumer doesn't like it but Rogers is there to make money and they do an EXCELLENT job at what they do. Kudos to Rogers! I know that if I started a cellular company, I wouldn't be lowering my prices so that the users that post in the retention thread can be happy....especially if theres a chance that my profits will be minimalized! Maybe I'm playing devil's advocate but then business has been in my blood since the 9th grade.

As I always say about this industry, those that need it can afford it! Roger's is OBVIOUSLY not gearing the $100 data towards our retention thread members but towards businesses and corporations...those that usually have the money to pay for such luxuries. If a company can't afford $100 / month, I can't see how they can stay in business ANYWAYS.

I agree - Rogers isn't going to price themselves down to their marginal cost of production anytime soon - not without being forced there. But as much as we can congratulate Rogers for finding a business with high margins, a small minority of customers who are willing to pay outrageous prices for a premium price-discriminated product, and an effectively-infinite barrier-to-entry for new competitors (how often is new radio spectrum made available, after all?), we should also ask whether they should even be allowed to do this at all.

Rogers uses public radio spectrum - much of which was handed to them for free more than 20 years ago - to gouge Canadian consumers. The Canadian government, our proxy, legally guarantees them exclusive access to that radio spectrum. I can't set up a CB radio transmitter that broadcasts on Rogers spectrum. The police and the government protect that radio spectrum for Rogers from theft or infringement as if it was their physical property.

This is not a free market. No one can start up another company and start doing what Rogers is doing - competing for their customers, advertising competitive service - without getting a similar guarantee from the government, and that opportunity doesn't come around very often.

Anyways - I'm just belly-aching. I'm a strong supporter of ownership rules with radio spectrum. If I had my way Industry Canada would force Rogers et.al. to divest themselves of their physical network and buy the service back from competitive providers, a bit like AT&T was broken up back in the '70s. The best system for Canadian consumers and certainly the worst system for Rogers shareholders would be for Rogers and Bellus to be retail service providers, MVNO's that is, selling phones and billing us for monthly service, while buying network services from dozens of small physical regional network providers. The physical network providers (who wouldn't be allowed to sell retail services) would own a tiny fraction of the available spectrum in any one area and would compete with each other to sell network services to Rogers and Bellus. The value-add for Rogers and Bellus would be consolidating that fragmented spectrum into the appearance of a cross-country network. But there's basically no chance of this happening...

[k_dam]

are you 'legally' allowed to get the bb/wm $15 pack over the other $15 pack if you dont have a blackberry/wm data plan? on-device browsing is useless and i rather have the 2500 txt.

[mickliq]

Re the $20 Value pack...

If I have an HTC Touch (let's say it's a Rogers one), can I get unlimited on-device email? I know "data used to be data" but as I understood from the aborted March 18th pricing thread, with these new plans they actually monitor the device? I want to get my wife a Touch + wireless email but I don't want to pay much for it. She has the $11 essentials so that would cost $9 more a month (I am sure I can get something out of retentions but that's another story).

She would only be doing POP3 email, no push. She won't browse. We have our own domain so not sure about MobileMail (I assume that changes the domain to @rogers.com or something like that).

Thanks!

[WildDisease]

are you 'legally' allowed to get the bb/wm $15 pack over the other $15 pack if you dont have a blackberry/wm data plan? on-device browsing is useless and i rather have the 2500 txt.

Don't see why not..

[beamers]

Wow I was so excited when I read this thread till I sobered up

Bit of a non event really as not much to get excited about.

Only thing I like is the $11 Value Pack as regular voice mail just doesn't do it for me and now I will have name display.

What a shame Rogers is to short sighted to not see the potential increase in a lot of users had they gone with O_ssie post about data changes

Well it is Rogers so I have learned not to expect much from them

[JustinCredible]

Re the $20 Value pack...

If I have an HTC Touch (let's say it's a Rogers one), can I get unlimited on-device email? I know "data used to be data" but as I understood from the aborted March 18th pricing thread, with these new plans they actually monitor the device? I want to get my wife a Touch + wireless email but I don't want to pay much for it. She has the $11 essentials so that would cost $9 more a month (I am sure I can get something out of retentions but that's another story).

She would only be doing POP3 email, no push. She won't browse. We have our own domain so not sure about MobileMail (I assume that changes the domain to @rogers.com or something like that).

Thanks!

MOBILEMAIL is the application built into regular phones, not WM devices. Pretty much everything in the $20 pack is for regular phones only.

[Hans_Moleman]

I'm not too pleased by the new prices, but you can't please everyone, the $11 value pack features should have been included in the "Grandfathered" one

[JustinCredible]

The only advantage to keeping the now-grandfathered vale packs is no price increases. Rogers seems to enjoy hiking option prices.

[WildDisease]

Mega Incoming Plan Changes
-The incoming minutes on the $25 Mega Incoming plan will be capped at 500 minutes.

If I change my contract before May 6th, would I be eligible to keep unlimited Incoming?

[partyfavor]

I really dont get where Rogers learned their math.... Im sure we are all thinking the same thing.
I cant see the logic in charging 65$ for 1gig on a pc card (which we know can easily hit that 1gig mark).. but then charge 100$ for 1 gig on a WM phone (which more than likely wont come close to half of that amount on an average user).
If Im paying 100$ for only 1gig of data, I wanna use it wherever I damn well please... whether that be PDA, reg phone, PC card etc... 100$ for 1gig????? and Im restricted and cannot swap sims at that price point? WOW.
I can understand IMEI restricting something like the 7$unlim etc, but 100$ is a large amount to charge and to start restricting its usage at that price? they must have huge balls to wanna piss off current customers before the new players come in a yr or so. leave a bad taste in all our mouths why dont you... rogers, Im sure ull see the backlash soon enough....

[D Mac]

I really dont get where Rogers learned their math.... Im sure we are all thinking the same thing.
I cant see the logic in charging 65$ for 1gig on a pc card (which we know can easily hit that 1gig mark).. but then charge 100$ for 1 gig on a WM phone (which more than likely wont come close to half of that amount on an average user).
If Im paying 100$ for only 1gig of data, I wanna use it wherever I damn well please... whether that be PDA, reg phone, PC card etc... 100$ for 1gig????? and Im restricted and cannot swap sims at that price point? WOW.
I can understand IMEI restricting something like the 7$unlim etc, but 100$ is a large amount to charge and to start restricting its usage at that price? they must have huge balls to wanna piss off current customers before the new players come in a yr or so. leave a bad taste in all our mouths why dont you... rogers, Im sure ull see the backlash soon enough....

Where are you getting your info?

[cng.]

You can use your 1 GB for whatever you like if you pay $100. Tether it, do whatever. If you pay $65, you can still use it for whatever you like. The $65 plan cannot be on a SIM with a number though so if you want, you can go ahead and use your phone for internet only and no voice calls.

[partyfavor]

Where are you getting your info?

am I misreading the WM DATA PLAN part of the post?
with all the restriction talk, I take that as 1gig to use on my WM phone ONLY. If i take the sim and use it on my razr2, the IMEI filter will 'catch' me and charge me pay per use. OR is that not going to happen on this particular plan and Data is Data in this case.... and now confusing us even more (since they are training and getting us used to all these restrictions).
please tell me Ive misread the post somehow and just confused.

I am getting so tired and confused with Rogers and their data games... grrrr.