Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-ncis!helios.ee.lbl.gov!pasteur!ames!ncar!boulder!pikes!udenva!isis!aburt From: aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems Subject: Re: PC Pursuit pricing amendment Message-ID: <2384@isis.UUCP> Date: 6 Jan 89 17:21:24 GMT References: <8901050251.AA14569@nessus.telenet.com> Reply-To: aburt@isis.UUCP (Andrew Burt) Organization: Math/CS, University of Denver Lines: 91 In article <8901050251.AA14569@nessus.telenet.com> dkpurks@nessus.UUCP writes: > ADDITIONAL ANNOUNCEMENTS and ANSWERs to COMMON QUESTIONS > REGARDING PC PURSUIT PRICE CHANGE ANNOUNCEMENT. > > 1. WE HAVE DECIDED TO WAIVE THE LIMITATION OF ONE ACCOUNT PER > PERSON. Say what? This sounds like a kludge if I ever heard one. I'd like to propose the following rate structure, instead: A. $1/hr for connect time, with a $30 minimum (that is, a $30 flat fee for the first 0-30 hours). B. $1 for each additional hour above 30 hours. > 1. Many people are suggesting that it is the 30 hour monthly > usage cap ... which concerns them the most. Yes, it is. Particularly since PCP was sold as a service with "unlimited" usage. Given that there are around 500 hours a month available for usage under the old rules, 30 is awfully small. If the cap is in place to discourage heavy usage, let's discuss what "heavy" usage is. (If this is really the issue then I would say that "heavy" would be using more than half the available time, or greater than 250 hours a month. If you want to place a cap at that level then the objections would die down from many people.) Thus, amend my proposal to read: A. $1/hr for connect time, with a $30 minimum (that is, a $30 flat fee for the first 0-250 hours). B. $1 for each additional hour above 250 hours. > ... Raising the fixed monthly charge > penalizes those who use the service less than 30 hours a > month (which is statistically the vast majority). I don't care for ambiguous terms like "vast majority". Is that 50.1% or 99.9%? > To accommodate higher volume users, we have waived > the 1 account per user limitation (see above). (Which is just $1/hr for extra hours so let's do it that way instead.) > 2. When over cap usage billing begins in May 1989, a detailed > statement will be mailed to you no less than 10 days prior > to your credit card (or checking) account being debited, if > your account is to be charged for more than just the fixed > monthly charge. Here I have a MAJOR objection. I really don't count the minutes I'm logged in, nor does it look like I'd be able to *accurately* count the minutes even if I wanted to (which I don't, but that's not important since I **can't**). I feel it is incumbent on Telenet to inform me, WHILE I'M LOGGED IN, that I am about to exceed my usage cap (be it 30 or 250 hours). A warning one hour, five minutes, and at the point of exceeding it would only be fair. Suppose we use the horrible 30 hour limit. Suppose *I* calculate that I'm at 29 hours. I use an hour of time, because I really don't intend to pay for any extra time. Then I get billed, way after the month is over, for an extra hour of time because my calculations were off by an hour. That ain't fair, boys. Since YOU'RE the ones who want the limit, it's YOUR duty to tell us when we're about to and are exceeding it. Just for your info, if the above scenario ever occurs, and every time it does occur, I intend to contest the charges. I consider this situation much like someone sending me a package I didn't request then billing my charge card for it. I would keep the gift and contest the charge. Now I'm sure you don't want to go about giving people free time, do you? (By the way, I do NOT consider $4.50 an hour cheap. At $30 a month PCP will cost more than my monthly local phone bill, and that's for two phone lines. I have NEVER considered long distance inexpensive. I would never pay $4.50 for extensive periods of time on the phone. Geez, I consider a movie in a theater expensive at $6/person, and that's about $3/hour. Let's keep things in perspective, here!) -- Andrew Burt ncar!isis!aburt "Now go away or I shall taunt you a second time."