Misleading wireless(mobile) data usage cycle information

[kco]

I also believe Rogers should provide more timely updates for internet data usage. My previous provider's data was a maximum of 4 hours old and even this is not timely enough. By checking my data usage different times of the day, I have found Rogers does not even meet the 12 hour update interval. Timely information is important near the end of the billing cycle.

We are on the "For Heavier Usage" hub plan with steps as follows:

5GB - $60
10GB - $75
20GB - $90
50GB - $110
100GB - $145

Mobile internet is the only option for decent internet my rural location and Rogers has by far the best plan. We easily run up to the 20GB for $90 limit and expect we will start using more services like Netflix which will put us closer to the 50GB for $110 limit. We have two tablets, two smart phones and two Linux servers requiring software updates. I often postpone the larger updates to near the end of our billing period and will delay them further to the next billing period if we are near the 20GB limit. That saves us $20 for the month. Conversely, if we have a fair amount of room before the 20GB limit, I'll do all the software updates and perhaps download some video files to get up near the 20GB limit.

Once we subscribe to a service like Netflix or similar and normally start using over 20GB per month our next goal will to be to stay below 50GB per month. The penalty for going over the 50GB limit will cost $35 instead of the $20 for going over the 20GB limit.

The point is: timely data usage information is quite important for some of us.

I appreciate the information this thread provide regarding the billing changing on UTC time. I had assumed it was either the Eastern Time or my Pacific Time.

I think Rogers should:

1. make a note on the data usage web page saying that the billing changes at 19:00 Eastern Time.
2. provide more timely information for data usage. At worst it should be 4 hours delay instead of 12 hours (as competitors are doing).

Thanks for you information on this Gdkitty. I wonder why it takes up to 1.5 days to update the website data usage information. Surely they could read a more current database.

That said, I am very happy with Rogers "Heavy Usage" mobile offering.  It is far superior to the competition.

[kco]

I notice the timeliness for usage reporting is greatly improved over last week or so.  I think mine was updated three or four times since 05:30 this morning and now at 18:30 (in BC). 

Much appreciated.

[kco]

My enthusiasm two weeks ago re: more timely usage reporting was premature. For a day or so it seemed like usage was updated a few times throughout the day. Starting January 16 I recorded Rogers usage stats throughout the day(if I was around the computer). It looks as if updates for my account happen once per day sometime between 23:00 and 04:30 Pacific Time.

Here are intervals for days when I was able to record usage for greater than 12 hour periods throughout the day and the website data usage was not updated. The intervals are between my first and last website checks that showed no change in the data used. So the actual website update intervals will be greater than what I observed.

Jan 16 07:30 to Jan 17 08:00 - 24 hrs
Jan 19 - 16 hrs
Jan 20 - 13.3 hrs
Jan 21 - not recorded
Jan 22 - 16 hrs
Jan 23 - not recorded
Jan 24 - 14.3 hrs
Jan 25 - 16.6 hrs
Jan 26 - 15.5 hrs
Jan 27 - website updated mid morning(rather than sometime between 23:00 and 04:30), this is the only day Rogers data usage changed during a day
Jan 28 - 15 hrs

The Rogers' "Updated 12 hours ago" claim is meaningless. If they can't update webpage data at least every 12 hours they should get rid of the bogus message. A better option would be to provide a time stamp for the last update rather than "Updated 12 hours ago".  That should not be difficult.

I used the Rogers Billing online chat tool this morning to see if I could get yesterday's final GB number(which ended Jan 28 @16:00 Pacific Time) and usage so far in the new billing period. The contact person worked on it for 25 minutes and was unable to get the data. I have to wait for the invoice to see the final GB.

However, the contact person did say the technical support group may be able to provide more timely information. I think that may be true. I worked with the technical group when first installing my (non-Rogers) router and service. I recall at that time the support person was able to provide current usage.

It should be not too difficult to provide more timely usage data via the web page. It seems the routines could read a current database rather than some ancient snapshot.

Timely usage data is important for some. I think my normal use will be below 50 GB per month. Exceeding that results in an instant + $35.00. If we are close to the limit we may postpone watching a Netflix movie to the next billing cycle. Similarly, if we have lots of room, I can choose to run software updates for computers, tablets and phones.

Thanks to this thread I know my billing cycle starts at 16:00. Also, Rogers website usage statistics (usually) update between 23:00 and 04:30. As a workaround, and if close to my 50 GB limit, I intend to read the website usage information early in the morning and then disconnect/reconnect the MF275R Rocket Hub (via the Home page). That resets the "Current Connection" reading on the Information-->Statistics page. I will be able to get fairly accurate estimate of my total usage.

[dontregisterme]

Another way Rogers misleads you: data usage cycle 0 days left

Happened to log in and realize I was over my cap with 2 days left showing on the cycle.  Logged in 2 days later at about 6:00 am, and the meter shows 0 days.  When I called to ask them exactly what time of the day the cycle actually restarts, I was told they don't know and can't give me an exact time.  I explained that they have to know, because that is how they bill.  After a very long wait, I was told it resets at midnight.  So what that means is for an entire 24 hour period that the meter is saying 0 days, you are really in your last day.

[kco]

It resets at midnight Greenwich Mean Time.  I am in BC so my billing cycle ends at 16:00 on the 28th of the month.  That would be 19:00 in the Eastern time zone. 

The online data system could use improvement.  Some possibilities:

- show the days and hours remaining in the billing cycle.  Since they know our addresses it would not be difficult to determine the time zone.  Failing that, include a note stating the billing cycle ends on your billing date at 19:00 Eastern Time.

- show the actual time the data usage was recorded instead of the meaningless "Updated 12 hours ago".  As far as I can tell my data usage is updated only once per day shortly after midnight Pacific Time.

- update data usage more frequently.  Once every day seems a bit coarse.

I'm on a Rocket Hub Heavy Use plan and aim to keep under the 50 GB step.  So far I have been able to do that but it costs an instant $35 for the next step of 100 GB.  I made a spreadsheet to record usage and estimate the average GB/day I can use for the remaining days to keep below 50 GB.  So far it has worked well.

[dontregisterme]

What is astounding is that a CSR said they couldn't give me an exact time.  The start date and time of the beginning of the next usage cycle should be shown next to that garbage "My Wireless Usage" meter.  Which BTW, I have also noticed it often is not accurate to even the last 12 hours.  There have been multiple times it hasn't budged for several days with regular usage ongoing.

I specifically asked for clarification on the time, and there was no mention of GMT.  The fact that a customer would expect time references to be provided in their own time zone is so astoundingly obvious that it is clear this is just another way Rogers wants to deliberately confuse us.

Having to use alternate tools to monitor my usage is a poor substitue for Rogers providing the information (which they already have) in a clear and timely manner.  At the moment (May 3rd!) I can only see detailed usage up to April 2nd, more than a month ago. This is atrocious.

A company that can provide a variety of leading technological media services can't provide a useful, near real-time meter of my data usage?  Ridiculous.  Obviously, deliberately misleading.

[imorton]

I agree, as I too want to keep my usage under the 50GB, but the Wireless Usage section of My Rogers is totally useless....

We can CLONE SHEEP, but Rogers can tell me how much data I have left, nor when my billing cycle ends.

Not impressed.

[kco]

Another way you could track usage would be to use data from the Rocket Hub once you get close to the end of your billing period.  The Home page for the Hub gives Current Data and Duration statistics.  I think it is from the time of connection, but it may be from the last reset.  So you can set it to zero by either a Disconnect (if it counts from a disconnect) or a reboot (if it counts from a reboot).

I notice at times mine goes back to zero at times but I don't know whether it is from a disconnection or the counter simply "rolls over" at some limit. I know some were not due to reboots because there were no power outages and besides, the battery backup works well for power outages.

You can also see the data on the Information screen. It gives readings for the Current Connection and the Current Month.

[imorton]

Thanks for the reply, and the different workarounds.

It's a shame that Roger's as a huge corporation, can't you give us a data usage counter that we can use or rely on.

[gwmacdonald]

I have been tracking the data usage on my RocketHub for almost three years.    I have a router on the perimiter of my network through which all the RocketHub traffic passes.    On a daily basis I record the WAN data throughput on this router as well as the data usage recorded on the Rogers website.

Initially I assumed that the data usage on the Rogers website was a snapshot taken at midnight my local time (Mountain), so I recorded the data usage on my router at that time as well.    When I realized that the Rogers data and the data recorded on my router weren't synchronizing as expected, I started to record the data on my router at midnight Eastern time.    This shift produced better synchronization.

Recently I returned from a ten-day trip on the evening of the first day of my billing cycle.   The RocketHub was powered off during my absence.   I powered on the RocketHub at 19:00 MDT.    According to the thesis suggested earlier in this thread, if the data snapshot recorded by Rogers on its website is taken at midnight GMT, there should have been no data recorded for the first day of my billing cycle because the RocketHub was not powered on until after midnight GMT (18:00 MDT).     However, the data usage displayed on the Rogers website the next day was consistent with what I recorded on my router at 22:00 MDT (midnight EDT), thus confirming in my mind that the data snapshot displayed on the Rogers website is taken at midnight Eastern time.

[imorton]

Thanks for sharing all your info. This post though is staring to confuse me.... 🙂

There's so many acronyms, GMT, MDT, EDT, Daylight/Standard time.... I am losing track.

So if I understand correctly, I am in Montreal Qc (EST), so Rogers would take their snapshot at midnight EST. I just don't know if it is Daylight Savings Time, or Standard Daylight Time.

Thanks again for sharing your info. IAN.

[gwmacdonald]

My experience suggests that the data snapshot is taken at midnight Eastern time, either standard or daylight time as observed by most of Canada.

So, the standard/daylight differential can be ignored when determining the offset for your local time (unless you live in one of the areas in Canada that observes standard time year-round).

[kco]

I was incorrect when I stated the reference to GMT.  It should be UTC (London time which switches for daylight saving) as noted in this post:

http://communityforums.rogers.com/t5/forums/forumtopicpage/board-id/Getting_connected/message-id/299...

As stated in that thread, I think the total usage for the billing cycle ends at midnight UTC (not GMT), which I think is currently 17:00 for my billing period which ends June 28.  When BC and London both go back to standard time (I'm not sure it happens on the same date) my billing cycle usage will end at 16:00 on the 28th.

The snapshot usage shown on the website for any given day may be as gwmacdonald states, ie. they record it as of 24:00 Eastern time.  Thanks for that information gwmacdonald.  I think I will reboot my Rocket Hub a few evenings at 24:00 Eastern time (21:00 Pacific) and check it against the Rogers website daily totals like you did.

I find the time Rogers updates the daily website totals varies a lot.  It seems to update somewhere between 00:00 and 02:00 Pacific Time for my account, but as you mention, the usage data posted may be for the period ending at 24:00 Eastern Time.  As an example, I happened to check my usage June 15 at 03:15.  It showed usage of 27.11 GB.  When I checked again today at 05:45 it still showed 27.11 GB.  When I checked again at 13:45 it showed 29.35 GB, so it changed sometime between 05:45 and 13:45 today, rather than the usual time before 02:00 (all times Pacific).  But as you observe, the actual snapshot for the usage is probably 24:00 Eastern Time.

I imagine we all notice a day or so period after the end of our billing cycle where usage data is not available on the website.  For example, my last billing period (assuming the UTC end time is correct) ended at 17:00 May 28.  As of Jun 30 at 07:30 the webpage still showed 0 GB used for my current billing period.  When I checked again at 08:35 it showed 1.02 GB.  So it updated for the first time somewhere between 07:30 and 08:35 (Pacific) on the 2nd day of my new billing cycle.

For me, it is more important to know when our billing cycle ends  because I need that so I don't go from the 50 GB to 100 GB step, which costs an additional $35 even if I just go over by a few MB.  I have not had trouble staying under 50 GB but, if I was close to the end on my billing cycle end day, I would postpone upgrades or perhaps watching a movie to stay under the limit.  Conversely, if I have a lot of room left I might make a point of doing large downloads or software upgrades before the next billing cycle begins.

I am pleased with the Rogers service and Flex Hub heavy use package.  I imagine you feel the same gwmacdonald.  The Telus and Bell alternatives are obscenely expensive--except in Eastern Canada where Bell offers a decent package--but not in Western Canada because of a "sweetheart" deal with Telus.

That said, Rogers could make some simple improvements to the webpage usage data to clear the confusion.  Some suggestions:

1. include a note saying "Your current billing cycle ends June 28 at 17:00 Eastern Daylight time"

2. show "Current billing cycle usage: 29.35 GB as of midnight Eastern Time, June 15, 2016"

Those changes should not take much time or effort.  It's likely a lot less than customers and Rogers' service representatives have spent trying to make sense of it.

One thing for certain, the "DELAYED UP TO 12 HOURS" note on the webpage usage data is incorrect (after the first 12 hours since the update) and confusing.

[kco]

I am posting this to correct what I believe is incorrect information I and others previously posted CONCERNING THE TIME AND TIME-ZONE WHEN A BILLING CYCLE CHANGES for cellular internet data
usage. I am on the Rogers Flex Heavy plan (for Rocket Hubs only). Cell voice/data plans may follow different billing cycle end times.

A Rogers Technical Support person told me the billing cycle ends at midnight for the time zone in which the device is billed. i.e. the billing cycle does NOT end at midnight for the UTC time zone. So for my MF275R router in central BC, the billing cycle ends at midnight Pacific Time.

I discovered this because I went slightly over my targeted maximum of 50GB for last month. I used 50.11GB putting me in the next step (which goes to 100GB) and adding $35 for that step.

Rogers Billing Support were very understanding and immediately reversed the overcharge when I explained how I went over by the 0.11GB. I supplied details of how I monitored usage on the router and how I followed information from the Rogers Community Forums suggesting my billing cycle ended at midnight UTC time, which would be 16:00 for my Pacific time zone.

The Billing person did not actually know what time the billing cycle ends. But she reduced my bill and transferred me to Technical Support who told me it ends at midnight for the time zone in which the device is registered (Pacific Time for me).

The webpage data usage information page could use improvement. As far as I can tell it normally only updates once per day rather than at 12 hour periods as the webpage suggests. The Technical support person was unsure when it updates. However, he did find that my total of 9.99GB shown on the webpage at while we spoke at 09:15 July 08 was updated at 01:13 that morning. He thought the 01:13 was Eastern Time which would be 23:13 Pacific Time. I actually think it may be a daily total to midnight Pacific Time on July 07. I will be able to confirm that from the end of day totals on my next bill, which should be out around August 2.

So, the main points:

1. the data billing cycle ends at midnight for the time zone in which the device is registered
2. it appears data usage information is usually updated only once per day and is the total usage for the billing cycle to the end of the previous day.  However, I think the data may be updated once more during the day on the day previous to the billing cycle end day (i.e. the 27th for me because my billing cycle ends on the 28th).

I hope my information re: point #1 is correct.

RogersMoin, is there a way you can check your sources to determine when a user's billing cycle ends (i.e. the time zone)?

Thanks

[hiho]

Just like to put my 2 cents wrth in...over the last 20+ yrs of dealing with rogers internet i have found this little programe has been very helpful to me in keeping track of my real time bandwidth usage and the best part is that its free 🙂

https://www.softperfect.com/products/networx/

[RogersMoin · Accepted solution]

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@kco wrote:

So, the main points:

1. the data billing cycle ends at midnight for the time zone in which the device is registered
2. it appears data usage information is usually updated only once per day and is the total usage for the billing cycle to the end of the previous day.  However, I think the data may be updated once more during the day on the day previous to the billing cycle end day (i.e. the 27th for me because my billing cycle ends on the 28th).

I hope my information re: point #1 is correct.

RogersMoin, is there a way you can check your sources to determine when a user's billing cycle ends (i.e. the time zone)?

Thanks

---

@kco - Your point # 1 is almost correct. The explanation is as follows; the device may be served(authenticated) from any node(switch) on the network and the billing cycle ends at midnight of the node's time zone.

Generally, for the devices in Ontario and Quebec, the billing cycle ends at midnight Eastern Time. The Atlantic region is served out of Montreal so the billing cutoff  for NB and NS would be 11 PM and for NF will be 10:30 PM. The west region and Manitoba are served out of Calgary or Vancouver, so the cut-off time will be between 11 PM and 2 AM for those accounts.

Cheers,

RogersMoin

[kco]

Thanks for the reply, RogersMoin.

That somewhat clears it up. I am in the BC Okanagan and am quite sure I connect through Vancouver, so my billing cycle likely ends at midnight BC time. Knowing it does not end at midnight UTC (16:00 Pacific time) will help me avoid the mistake I made last billing cycle where we thought a new billing cycle started at 16:00. We then watched a couple of Netflix episodes that evening which put us into the next Flex Hub step with a $35 charge.

The Rogers billing person was very helpful when I explained my mistake. She actually gave me a credit for $55 instead of the $35. I guess that was for my inconvenience. However, I was not upset and was just hoping they would reverse the $35. The extra $20 was a nice surprise and much appreciated.

That reminds me...I will find the place on the website where you can put in a good word for support received. The billing person was helpful as was the technical person she transferred me to.

I also intend to send a message through the "Share a Concern" part of the website to suggest Rogers improve the Data Usage and Billing Cycle information. Two simple improvements would be:

1. Include the time and time zone for which the data usage on the website is shown. The technical support person I spoke with was able to provide that to me. It is available, so why not show it?
2. In addition to the "xx days left in your billing cycle", add a note similar to, " which ends at 24:00 Pacific Time, July 28" (for my account).

Again, thanks for your reply.

Also, I think I put wrong information about the billing cycle ending at midnight UTC in at least one more thread. I'll find it and add a message with a link back to your message in this thread.

EDIT: I found two other threads where I posted the incorrect cycle ending times and corrected them, referencing this thread. 

[geezaloo123]

I currently have the same problem. My billing cycle ends on the 9th, on the 7th it says 1 day left, on the 8th and 9th it doesn't display anything at all. On the 10th when it should reset to new usage, it doesn't, just shows previous usage balance but yet on the 11th I'm already in minus 10gb.

My usage updates are not accurate, my usage cycle is not resetting and also not receiving 75%/100% notices promptly. I opened up a case, I'm still waiting to hear from them. Reps keep suggesting to get "unlimited", I can't afford it and why should I pay extra because Rogers can't do their job!

[kco]

I have closely compared my MF275's readings with Rogers online statistics over the last couple of months. I am on a Flex Heavy plan with the billing cycle ending at midnight on the 28th each month. Here is what I have found for my account:

1. The online data usage readings displayed reflect the total to-date for the current billing cycle as of midnight of the previous day. For example: today at 09:00, August 16 the website shows I have used 23.93GB. This value is for 24:00 August 15 (Pacific time for my account). I confirmed this by comparing last month's actual daily billing readings with the Rogers online information.

2. The Rogers online total for my account appears to be updated sometime between 02:00 and 03:30 most days, except for the last day of the billing cycle.

3. If there is a problem producing a total for a day it appears to get updated sometime after mid-morning (e.g. 09:00).

4. On the last day of the billing cycle(28th for me) the online total for midnight the previous day appears to get delayed until later than usual. Once available it may get updated one or more times during that day.

For example, for my cycle ending June 28 the total for midnight June 27 did not show up until sometime between 08:15 and 10:15 when it went from 47.73 to 48.72GB. Then, sometime between 10:15 and 20:15 it went from 48.72 to 49.36 which I assume is actually showing some usage for the current day, June 28. My actual total billing cycle total usage ending June 28 was 50.11GB and not available until the bill came out July 02.

5. Online data usage gets set back to zero at midnight on the last day of the cycle (28th for me) and can stay that way for a day or so. However, for my current cycle which started July 29 my first online data reading was available 08:15 July 29.

The MF275 Rocket Hub's traffic counters are accurate and agree with Rogers billing volume, so it is not difficult to monitor traffic with the hub. However, I imagine it is not so easy if you are using other devices such as cell phones or other hubs.

It is hard to see why it would be difficult to supply more timely data usage information. Also, it should be fairly simple to provide data such as a timestamp for the current data usage reading and the actual time and time zone when an account's billing cycle ends.

Particularly difficult to understand is the incorrect "Delayed up to 12 hours" note. It is untrue. It gives an impression of a sloppy or uncaring Management that can't be bothered to change it. At least change the note to "Delayed up to 24 hours"! 

On the other hand, I am very pleased with the reliability and performance of my Flex Heavy Hub plan.

[BrianH96]

Not any more!