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From: elund@pro-graphics.cts.com (Eric W. Lund)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc
Subject: Re: Prodigy - Conversations with Fred
Message-ID: <5888@crash.cts.com>
Date: 26 Nov 90 08:56:07 GMT
Sender: root@crash.cts.com
Lines: 36

In-Reply-To: message from F0O@psuvm.psu.edu

I've used Prodigy for a year, and the only thing it really had going for it
was the unlimited E-MAIL.  The protests from Rothman and other irate users are
not simply about the E-MAIl, but about censorship.  I have had many letters
"rejected" for it's content, with little explanation as to why.  And then
someone else later gets a letter posted making the same point I was trying to
make.  Prodigy officials are incapable of handling its users -- they treat us
like children.  Any discussion about this treatment is forbidden.  So, the
users must resort to discussing things in private.  Please note that these
letters are four "pages" in length.  A page, to Prodigy, is 40 characters wide
and about ten lines long.  Not much you can pack in a page.  And at $.25 a
shot, this kills freedom of expression on Prodigy.  We can't post publically
due to censorship, and we can't post privately due to the excessive charges.  
The real reason for the charge is to pay for the new Tymnet access lines they
are getting, and since %90 of the mail is made by %10 of the users, they
decided to punish the %10.  I've talked with many "non-mail active" users, and
it turns out they simply aren't active at all.  Prodigy wants to make money
off of people who are too lazy to write "cancel" on the bill.  We are
protesting because the email charge is just another form of censorship that
the Prodigy diplomats enjoy imposing.  I don't know what they're afraid of,
but it should be the protesters.  We have every right to threaten their
business in order to get what we want.  We are disatisfied customers.  Sure,
we could just leave, but isn't it better first to try to become a satisfied
customer?  I have informed Prodigy of my planned cancellation if they do not
stop the proposed implementation of email charges.  They are lucky, I'm not
one of the activists who plan to stay on Prodigy, call the Tymnet lines, and
make Prodigy lose money in a matter of hours.  (At $2.00/hour, in six hours
Prodigy would be paying more to keep the user than the user pays!)
 
Anyhow ... I haven't had a babble in a while.  I can rest now.
                      Eric W. Lund #==== ARPA/DDN: pro-graphics!elund@nosc.mil
          Friend, Countryman, Ears |  __  Internet: elund@pro-graphics.cts.com
___________________________________| <  \    UUCP: ...crash!pro-graphics!elund
PRO-GRAPHICS:   "It's better than  |  >    >  <  | ProLine: elund@pro-graphics
        a sharp stick in the eye." ! <__/.<_/\_>.|__________. Prodigy: xcbr22b