After 35+ Years I'm Parting (Most) Ways With Rogers Soon

[pmcsplaza]

I regretfully announce that I am giving up all my Rogers services bar the Mobile ones very soon.  I've been offered a deal I can't refuse with Bell Fibe.   Although Rogers tried to match they couldn't quite and there are other reasons too.  The main one being that I am sick and tired of all these cables running everywhere and the often intermittent nature of my Internet service which seems to go down with regularity at least once every 24 hours along with the cable TV, not always coincidentally either.

There are drawbacks to the competitor's services which I am aware of but I'm ready to give it a shot.

I'm just hoping the switch doesn't kill me as I am going to have to move several pieces of furniture in order to access the major part of the cabling and the phone modem etc.

At almost 77 and with a heart condition I don't need the fuss, but there's that old saying "it's never too late"....so here goes (on the 21st).

[pmcsplaza]

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Do you want a butterflies and rainbows community or a healthy one ?  

This is not a place to  discuss religious affiliations  or what one person  believes God thinks is right   ... but why is it unacceptable to discuss hijacked signal  ...it has to do with the industry and it educates those involved . To delete the discussion  just exhibits a head in the sand  attitude  .   It certainly looks as though there are enough law abiding adults here that  mentioning  such a topic   should not  be a deleteable  offence . 

Nothing wrong with not wanting to add to the discussion  but really  deleting  the post  just suggests to me that Rogers doesn't trust us to be able to discuss it in an adult, law abiding manner ... is that an environment you feel is positive ?

 That's not our rules.  Rogers will remove anything that strays off topic and/or that talks too much about competing products and I agree with them.  This isn't the place to be discussing the merits of this and that system.

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[barndoor]

Agreed Peter , Rogers board ...Rogers rules  .  

 But in dealing with these topics should you decide to  ... if you take a mature approach  and include it with pertinent discussion the mods will generally leave it  ... if you stomp your feet and just say Rogers sucks  it gets deleted .  

I've  have had close to ten   posts deleted while testing their limits . Of course it varies  depending on the mod   but for the most part they are reasonably consistent .  I have a number of posts still  readable that are far more anti Rogers than some of the ones that were deleted but  it was all about the presentation  and terms of the discussion .  

If we were discussing the best ways to hijack signal , absolutely  ...delete it  . But to touch on it briefly  as it was here  what is the harm ... Rogers should be happy that there are board members that have shown the sense of right and wrong with regard to services, that was shown in this thread . 

[barndoor]

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@pmcsplaza wrote:

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  This isn't the place to be discussing the merits of this and that system.

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Sure it is  .. at least in how it compares to Rogers participation in that system....they say they want feedback  and when I start discussing why I switched one account to a competitor    that is feed back  ... it gets left up  usually .  If I start acting like a salesman for another company  then I think it is beyond feedback and will quite likely be deleted and understandably so .

[pmcsplaza]

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@barndoor wrote:

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@pmcsplaza wrote:

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  This isn't the place to be discussing the merits of this and that system.

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Sure it is  .. at least in how it compares to Rogers participation in that system....they say they want feedback  and when I start discussing why I switched one account to a competitor    that is feed back  ... it gets left up  usually .  If I start acting like a salesman for another company  then I think it is beyond feedback and will quite likely be deleted and understandably so .

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Well Rogers decide that anyway.

[BS]

In general, I have had very few occasions of deletions or edits in the past, and like @barndoor I have not always been overly supportive of the practices of Rogers in their services, in comparison to other companies (I never push another company over them and generally just say "the competition") as I am just making a comment on how they compare and to help guide people in their discussions - I generally am providing that kind of information in response to someone else, but have started a few of my own along the way.

I do my best to be polite, to present facts and sources and I have been generally left alone and the dialogue has flowed nicely until all that want to pitch in have, then we all move on.

My only reason why I even commented on the above issue is that I do support avoiding the post if the person has directly referred to what may not be legal or very questionable processes, but my concern was that the discussion got into moralistic discussions about right and wrong, as was stated into religious beliefs, in total absence of the original post, and I do support educating people that some practices like the use of an Android box in particular ways may be questionably on a legal level, which no boards of this type will support, but education that there are honest practice of use of devices on our Internet for legitimate services as alternatives to TV, or phones, say Skype to avoid long distance, etc, is quite appropriate for discussion and Rogers and its advocates have the chance to advocate why their solutions are a better alternative, but certainly, possible legal use of devices on Rogers services is a no go territory, except to educate of the reality of possible legal implications and leave it to us to research.

I love a wide open discussion of pros and cons of different ways to consume our service needs in terms of devices, alternative models of delivery, etc, but I am in agreement, lets avoid getting into personal moralistic opinions.

Just my two cents and clarification.

And as said, ultimately Rogers rules, they decide, and when I have pushed a limit, I accept it and either find a more appropriate way to say it, or move on.  That is what I meant when I said lets keep it friendly, when we get into morals and religion, we are treading into a territory that may be appropriate for Facebook, but not for this forum.

Bruce

[BS]

And as a final comment on this whole topic, going back to the original post by @pmcsplaza about moving on due to a better deal, I have finished my own homework and lots of discussions with reps and customer relations.

At the end of the day, the current price product mix doesn't meet my needs.

I am dropping cable completely (which reduces my historic better choice bundle discount which is based upon number of services in place - which I learned is also basically the only loyalty thing left in place for the future for many of us long term people).

Rogers is down to about 17 different plan mixes and wants that down to the current ones only and the ones that people may currently be on, but you can stay on those plans and pay all the price increases, and removed discounts, or take a current plan.

So in my case, I was looking for an Internet with slow speed and preferably unlimited bandwidth - to get the bandwidth desired, because I currently use a PVR android box which will also go to an antenna systems we are installing as an alternative to Cable and yes, we lose speciality stations, but we have netflix, Amazon prime (because we use amazon a lot for other purchases), our children often purchase us DVD's and or a Google play gift card, and we watch the movie choice through Google play store, and a couple of fully legal options - all my family has working in publishing and we are strong advocates of copyright, because it protects our jobs and the intellectual and artistic work of the people we published.

We are going to a local wholesaler in our community, who has been around telecom, security, antenna, tv repair, computers etc since 1959, and can offer very good deals due to the fact that they serve mostly commercial and municipal customers and can offer good rates to residential customers as well.

As I said on the phone today, I had no desire to leave Rogers, but when I said, drop cable out, my discount on my cell phone from BCB reduced, increasing the price of that service, the home phone price, which my wife prefers to have in place for her business (just preferrence on her part) - the price skyrocketed from the current bundle pricing, and there was no way to meet my desire to keep my pricing low with a low speed plan and higher Internet.

So at the end of the discussion which ended very well both of us pleased with what we had to try to accomplish knowing the limitations on both sides, we will be looking at finalizing our dropping of all Rogers home services, and moving to a wholesaler with much better prices - yess we pay for equipment, but the savings cover that, and we keep our cell phone services.

So after 25+ continuous years and 45+ total in my lifetime with Rogers, purely due to financial restrictions in our life, and the fact that Rogers does not provide a mix that meets our current financial position and our decision on our needs for service, it is time to move on.

We may be back in a year when the price of the wholesaler goes up a bit (still less than Rogers would be after their one year offer to me ran out with a small amount to try to lower it a bit and the remaining BCB discount), but a new customer plan pricing would have kept me, at least for a year (go figure - we have all commented on how all companies seem to be more concerned at increasing customer base by bringing in new customers - they are all doing the same, while us long term customers really are not being offered much at all)

I miss the days when Rogers called me and said, because you have been a loyal customer, we can offer you, or I called in about a question on a bill, and whileon the phone, they said, oh by the way, we have a promotion to long term customers of this, this and this.

I have never had to do this dance of trying to nail down the details of my choices, and prices to find that a new customer gets better deals than I do.

It is just business, I don't take it personally, I just no longer fit into their desired customer and service mix and so be it.

I will still hang around and support as best I can, as I will begin to know less and less about Rogers, but I think I still have things to offer.

Most important thing I have learned, is know what your desired price point is, and your needs and what range you are looking forward to, then do you shopping and find what is out there - there are definitely lots of choices I have found, some good, some so so but it came down to price I can afford and mix of service for my needs.

It has been a good thread, it has wandered around a bit, but it has also helped me on the discussion of what my needs and alternatives were.  That is a very good use of this board to guide us all in knowing our choices, to clarify what Rogers offers in general and their directions in services so we can plan for longer terms than only one year.

And I have also learned through the knowledge of so many how to cut through the marketing fluff of we have the best speed, we have the best TV features and options, we have the best choice of this and that and we all have the best bundles and pricing - not I never said who the we was - it comes at us in all directions, confuses those who really don't know the difference between feature sets of services, pros and cons, speed versus bandwidth, terms and conditions, etc.  The board helps us to dig through the mud and figure out just what we are willing to pay, how hard we are willing to work for it, and what services do we really want, and in my case, what am I going to give up due to financial life changes, and which companies provide a reduced mix of services that I can afford.

Life goes on, business goes on, it was a great ride for years, with very few complaints about the company, and I can leave happy that I did my best to get what I can afford and want, but Rogers cannot provide what I have chosen to live with at a price that I can afford to still pay for the real "needs" in life, like medication, medical care, my home, clothing and food and entertainment will return to board games, cards, some TV material delivered primarily through an antenna (hey, I am back in 1970's now, I lived then can live now without it), and even the subscription OTT solutions are probably going leaving us with a very low end speed plan and we will do social media, email and the like, and our local library has free access, as well as at least 30 hotspot restaurant and municipal locations within walking distance.

thanks Bruce  And good night.

[barndoor]

Congratulations on getting it all sorted  BS  ....  

It is indeed sad that, here there is  someone that has been happy with Rogers  services and they  can"t match the price point   of the competition  .

[BS]

Most importantly was not so much the price point, it was the product mix - 30 Mbs/250 couldn't cut it as I move to more OTT solutions which I have been adding over the last year anyway as I tried them out as I needed the bandwidth.  I have run the same services up at my father in law on 10Mbs and had absolutely no issues on one HD TV - sure the initial menu takes a bit longer to load, but once loaded, you go forward quickly, and yes, the initial load of the stream takes about 30 seconds instead of 15, but have learned it is a good chance to talk - then start the show after we talk - there is more to life than a TV show on netflix.
So I just wanted low speed and higher bandwith.  I had to move to 75Mbs/500GB (now we are reaching overkill on both levels - we have been using an indoor antenna and get all channels from Toronto, Buffalo, Rochester and area and some interesting unusual stations, like an all oldies movies and tv shows, a sports channel, music, a radio station (still can get that on my Sony radio cassette, CD player and MP3 player).

The wholesale competitors could give me the mix I need, have been around here for may years, no their tech stuff very well, and do all steps to discontinue the services and set them up, except I return the rental devices.

So, just two years ago, we could get unlimited for a 10.00 add-on, now we have to buy speed to get bandwidth.  So bottom line is I am not willing to pay to own a Porche using high test fuel.  I am happy with my used Chev that uses regular unleaded gas, so I would rather have low reliable speed and cheaper (more bandwidth) to give me the range of things I choose to do.

Yes, it is unfortunate that they appear to let people like myself, and the OP leave, but that is their business decision - on one level, they will still make money off me as the wholesale Internet will be flowing over the same cable that I am currently using, just a different IP and DNS, modem.

By the way, side note - the company will no longer consider any Hitron modems as their experience is that they die too often - kind of like at Rogers, oh it doesn't work, return it and get another one.  Hope that when they go to Comcast they switch out their modems and also they don't do gateways and assist the customer at setting up all the WIFI needs, routing, etc on the router you get.  Since they also deal in networks and computers and servers, they also support answering questions like, I am having problems with connecting to this device - bring in your computer, they will do a shop test and test it on their services (shop costs are real low for customers).

So, I also get what I loved as a commercial consumer - a company that creates models of equipment and service that fit exactly what I do with my services.

As I said, life goes on.  I didn't want to make this decision, they just gave me no choice but to.  I don't need the Cadillac service, I just need my Chevy, with my local friend doing service, not the dealer. Best of all worlds.  No cable or specialty stations, but I didn't have them 10 years ago, I can live without them now too.

Bruce

[barndoor]

You  guys and your use of the english language  ....   lol 

@BS , so  you wouldn't  have taken the higher speed and bandwidth from Rogers if the  price had been cheaper  and the  remainder of the package suited your requirements at the lower price  ? 

[BS]

Yes, my use of English language can be hard to follow - blame it on the mental health - I did used to be a teacher of elementary students, and a published researcher, so I used to be able to do it.  

Answer, yes, I would have taken higher speed and bandwidth with Rogers if the price had been competitive (lower) to the competitors, and if the rest of the package suited my requirements.

But alas - it didn't - I would have considered the new customer pricing alternative for one year, but wasn't offered (can get it in 3 months  - yup I really want to do this all over again - nope!!)

And I could have kept things within the framework of my current contract, lost discounts in places and maybe have got close, but again, really don't want to do this all again in October when the current one runs out.

Hope my use of the English language was better this time - I ramble for sure and drift off topic and am not concise for sure - 

Thanks @barndoor  Always a pleasure to get helpful feedback on my communication, and I really mean that. The teacher is now the student.

Bruce

[pmcsplaza]

Bruce,

That was basically what I experienced too.  The agents I spoke to didn't seem inspired to keep me as a customer for TV, Home Phone and Internet services.

Maybe they are constrained in what they can offer.

In past years I've had no trouble being persuaded to stay.

Now alas all they have from me is my Mobile service.

[BS]

Thanks for the feedback on your experience @pmcsplaza  It allows people like ourselves to know, that this isn't us, this is just business.

I will give credit to the last retention person I spoke to - they were "inspired" to fully understand my needs and was very clearly understanding of why I could not accept it. Polite, thorough and very understanding of my circumstances, and honestly sounded disappointed that she had no options to help me go forward.

They also acknowledged that yes, the old model where they offered loyalty offers on a consistent basis, (the only one I know of right now is the data add on for share everything plans), is pretty much gone as an option for the reps to work with us, either just for loyalty or to convince us of reasons to stay.

They used to have a range of offers they could offer that could meet the desires of just about any customer and what always amazed me was that they often just offered them to me when I called in about something else. That is how I got all the bonus add on's on my old grandfathered plans, the Better Choice Bundle discounts, and may others over the years.

They are definitely constrained, but she at least explained all the options she could work with and did acknowledge her own personal thanks for the long commitment, but at the end of the day, her hands were completely tied.

Clearly this is a very definite and hard lined decision by Rogers to offer only a select model of services, which definitely is very different from my own personal experiences with the company.  Whether it pays off is to be seen.

Thanks for all the support in this very tough decision making process for my wife and I and hope that by communicating my experience along with others, we can all begin to understand these new models and make our individual choices.

Bruce

[barndoor]

You know I was just funnin ya @BS ... it is a very rare  occaision indeed that there is any question as to what your message is .  

And while mobile  ws our  only accounts  with Rogers,  9 months ago  main one  of them moved to a competitor . It  was mainly price point that was the issue  ..  but after twenty some years , Rogers would have had to go 5-10 % better for retention  due to past customer service issues .  Maybe the new provider will be no better or worse but one must be optimistic  right?  

[BS]

@barndoor  I knew you were joking around - a little bit defensive today - just the way the health goes at times, always love a conversation with you and you digs and jokes and support. We are kind of alike.

All we will have left is phones, and we are still thinking that one over.

While we are adding full disclosure into the mix - you and others know I have had my challenges with Rogers services over the few years, whether it be the flop of the initial implementation of MyRogers, Navigatr, old security protocols or certificates with One Number, IPTV failure, the online site for home voice mail, and as I like to say, "oops, clicked the wrong button, and oh by the way, I can't set it back".

I have worked through various levels and got satisfaction at the end, but have had serious doubts about their approach to CRTC decisions and implementation of those changes, which they say "regulatory changes", and I respond, well actually regulatory changes from the Ask Canadians initiative and we said we want changes in our service models and they did their best to implement changes.  Guess that is the new world where we have to communicate changes through the CRTC, then they have to try to enforce it.

And I have had serious doubts at their multiple attempts to keep up to changes with the competition, trying to be "better" and failing in so many ways, and serious questions about their technical prowess in their internal staff, contracted providers, and support staff to put products out with adequate testing.

But I made my mind known as many did here and through reps, and escalation and things improved somewhat, but in the meantime, prices increase, product choice decreases, and I was priced out.  Loyalty kept me through all that, but it can't keep me to buy things I don't want nor can I afford it.

I do hope the next provider does at least as good or better service, I can live with service issues and expect them to come with modern technology, and ultimately I am not contracted (minor penalty that I have to pay back the discount if I leave before a year and that is fair), and I shall see if the decision pays off.  But at a minimum, I am returning to my roots and learning to enjoy time with my wife, puttering again with habits, and we are both dropping the tv addiction we have developed.

On a closing note - I heard an ad for cellular data from one of the companies, didn't catch who it was.

Went something like this - Are you satisfied with the data you have - yes - are you concerned with the amount of data you have - no does it seem like I am disatisfied in any way -  Oh, well, we can offer you 2 gig free on the best network (by the way, it wasn't Rogers - they did the 2 gig free, guess the competitors weren't far behind, and Koodo was actually first).  So, although the person in the ad doesn't need the extra data, they get it.

So where is the offers when it is for loyalty, not for competition.

Bruce

[pmcsplaza]

As a footnote , I have to report a bizarre thing.  My Rogers email address is still receiving traffic.  Not much but some (I guess I forgot some subscriptions when I was doing the change reported in post #1).  I know because it is linked to my old Yahoo.ca email address which is forwarded to me via a spam filtering service.   So if someone emails my old Rogers address, Yahoo reads it as its own and forwards it.

I've gone into Yahoo Mail (which IS Rogers Mail whether you want it to be or not) and click Settings > Accounts > xxx (that account) > "Remove Alias" and get an error saying I need a valid Yahoo address, which of course I do.

A bit of a dilemma there.  Any ideas folks?

[BS]

For now, I don't think I would worry about it.  The member's centre is just an overlay to the standard Yahoo settings, simplified, with most of the options stripped out, but if you have a Rogers's email, it won't let you get to the yahoo settings.

Since you don't have the Rogers account anymore, you won't be able to get to the member centre.

So, long and short of it, the emails from Rogers being forwarded to you, just let the relevant parties know of your changed address.  Maybe it takes a while before Yahoo shuts the Rogers accounts down.

Ahh, what a mess Rogers can be with just about everything they do.  Some things they do well - let me think - nothing coming to mind that they consistently do well , and other things to be polite, they are somewhat ignorant (in the true sense of the word - unaware of true knowledge - or don't know) about a lot of what they provide.

You thought you were done, and things keep coming.

Bruce

[pmcsplaza]

This morning the "Please Hold" lady has cut me off 5 times and don't anyone even try the option to have them call back, that calls you and tells you that you are next in line and promptly hangs up on you.

I think their phone system needs an overhaul.

Anyway am on hold now with a possible 25 minute delay ahead of me.   Oh well.

Regarding the mail account, if I click the link under my name it takes me to the page where one can Add an Email account, but not take one off alas.   So that part of my account is still active.

[pmcsplaza]

BTW I still have a Rogers account.....for my 2 mobile devices.   It tries to take me there each time I call in.

[Pauly]

I have a comment on here, not directed at anyone in particular, but its a general comment about people who want to leave Rogers.

Just because someone wants to leave Rogers, does not mean Rogers is a bad company.

Sometimes it could be a result of someone moving to another area which may not be serviced fully by Rogers, or sometimes it could be because of a competitor offering a better price, or because of technological limitations.

Just remember, in Canada you have competition and can often change companies to which ever suits your needs and if Rogers is one of those who suits your needs in some way, then all the best to you.

The same can be easily said about competitors. So at the end of the day if you are not happy, I'm sure they will honestly try to solve your issues, but if you decide to leave for what ever reason then that is fine, they can not hold a gun to your head and force you to stay, you as a consumer ultimately have the freedom to choose a company that suits your needs. Not only that but if you have any issues or questions, you also should realize that you have very great customer service in place not just that but you also have friendly people on here just like me who volunteer our time and do not get paid but wish to help other users on here with their questions and concerns.

[pmcsplaza]

Quite agree Pauly.

[luna]

After a lifetime, so it seems, earlier this year I left Rogers for a much better deal with the other big competitor . I wasn't very happy with better offers to new customers than to customers like myself who had not only sunk a lot of money into Rogers but stuck it out with them through some pretty awful times over many decades.

The other company made me an offer I just couldn't refuse. 

One day after my new service was installed and all of Rogers' equipment returned to one of their stores, I discovered an 'error' in my new billing account. The  price and plan that was originally negotiated and finalized was nowhere to be found. (Good thing I kept detailed notes..)

I called billing and explained my concern and thought it surely wouldn't be a big deal to make the correction.

I was so wrong in my assumption. They had no record of what my new plan and monthly charges would be for the next year. After getting nowhere and too much time parked on the phone, I asked to speak with that rep's supervisor. That was unsuccessful as apparently there was no one higher up to talk with according to the rep.

I was not going to accept a $90 difference in their favour so I called the CRTC who gave me the phone number of the Executive office.

The man I talked with said he was a supervisor in the Ex office and assured me that the error would be fixed by him and I would get an email confirmation of the correction.

The call ended with him interjecting some religious jargon! DIdn't like that at all.

I never did receive the corrected email confirmation and over the next couple of months I spent more time on the phone with them then actually being able to relax and enjoy my new services.

Every time I checked my online bill, which was near impossible to make heads or tails of, my charges where jacked up again and again. Calling became an exercise in futility -their word against mine and the one constant was their insistence that I added new features etc.

It was making me feel sick. So one evening, way after this new company's call centre was closed I called Rogers. Not only was Rogers still open but I talked with the nicest man who was also in a call centre in CANADA!

I returned back to Rogers the next day and even though I am paying a  more than the competition's original offer as well as Rogers old price plan 2 months prior the peace of mind is priceless.

It is worth it for me even though I am on a fixed income, to be with a company that is accessible, local and I know has been really trying to make billing easier to read and understand, has made positive changes to their website, better training and apparently their are more technicians. (My building has some major wiring issues and I am in a high density area) and twice when I needed someone to come out to fix a connection I got an appointment the same day! Also big improvements with the technicians knowledge and professionalism.

I am so happy to be back with Rogers and this whole experience showed me what really bad service is truly about.

I have gone through some major growing pains with Rogers over the years but I always had the options to escalate  right up to Rogers ombudsman with very satisfactory resolves. I really do appreciate being treated like I am a valued customer.

Thank youRogers!

Luna