Respect due to the Sunday Bizz Post once again

Eurorunner

Well done to Adrian Weckler/Sunday Business Post for their continued coverage and exposure of €ircon. Their coverage of the company has been comprehensive in recent weeks and they are to be commended for same.

Adrians article in todays issue - "Don't be afraid to leave Eircom's Apron Strings" - puts it up to irish people to switch from eircom to an alternative telecoms provider. Lets just hope that the average punter is motivated by this to make the switch and stop allowing themselves to be ripped off.

In addition, the Green Party's allegations of the govt. facilitating the valentia bid for €ircon make front page in an article by Eamon Quinn here (currently being discussed in another boards thread).

Ryaner

Well done. They do need to sort out the double bill thing though. It does cause alot fo people to go back to eircom. Thats why we went back but we are going back to esat once I've got the BB installed and activated in the house.

LFCFan

Originally posted by Ryaner
Thats why we went back

This is something I just can't understand. It seems people are more inconvenienced by 2 bills rather than expensive bills. Doesn't make sense to me.

Eurorunner

Agree with LFC..

Sleipnir

yeah I don't see why getting two bills is such a problem for people.
I mean, if you use billpay or something it makes no difference really.

BendiBus

A lot of bulletin board regulars seem to miss the fact that human factors (comfort factor being top of the list) are far more important than technical factors when it comes to making choices.

Which is why well marketed crap sells better than undersold quality.

Software, music, phonecalls. You name it, the majority of customers will go with the names they're familiar with.

Eurorunner

Well, i understand the comfort thing, but when you weigh comfort against price - in this instance, it doesnt compute. If for others, they disagree, well dont dare complain about eircom pricing then;)

Ripwave

Originally posted by BendiBus
You name it, the majority of customers will go with the names they're familiar with.

Which is why I insist on calling the company in question oreillycom - to remind people that "eircom" isn't "our" phone company any more.

BendiBus

Originally posted by Ripwave
Which is why I insist on calling the company in question oreillycom - to remind people that "eircom" isn't "our" phone company any more.

Except most people haven't a clue what you're on about and think you're probably a little eccentric. Or irritating. Certainly obsessive. In any case they immediately switch off. :dunno: Referring back to the comfort factor, if you make people uncomfortable by forcing your obsession on them, they will back off. Off you, not Eircom!

Eurorunner

Nobodys forcing anybody to do anything here. At the end of the day, you pays your money and makes your choice.

If someone wants to *knowingly* allow themselves to be ripped off (cos thats what it is), thats their decision ultimately.

Genghis

Sometimes there is no choice. My phone bill by value is approximately 40% rental and fixed charges, and 50-55% fixed call charges - by which I mean 1891 Internet access, which is not transferable to another company afaik. The 'calls' value - where I could shop around - might come to €2 a month - even a 95% saving on these is hardly worth shouting about on a €40 bill each month.

What I want:

Broadband, inclusive of line rental, for less than €40/month. Then I'd move, and use my mobile for telephone calls.

Ripwave

Originally posted by Genghis
Sometimes there is no choice. My phone bill by value is approximately 40% rental and fixed charges, and 50-55% fixed call charges - by which I mean 1891 Internet access, which is not transferable to another company afaik.

Why are you using their 1891 service? ESAT/IOL and UTV both offer more for less on subscription dial up services.

http://www.u.tv/utvipxlx/index.asp?loc=ie
http://www.iol.ie/netsmart/
http://www.iol.ie/anytime/

Ripwave

Originally posted by BendiBus
Except most people haven't a clue what you're on about

I obviously have a higher opinion of the intelligence of my fellow readers than you have.

Genghis

Thanks Ripwave, the UTV deal looks very good value. I am going to have a look at my eircom bills for the last few months and check out how much I use currently, I expect it is over €9.99 a month already. I am looking forward to calling eircom already!

Ryaner

The reason most people change because of two bills is because it get messy with two bills working out payments etc. The two bills come at different times and have to paid seperate. Lately our bill has gone way up so we getting bb in and going to esat in a effort to drop the bill. With 77euro of net charges it shouldnt be hard tho :P

dahamsta

If your calls are with another provider, the Eircom bill comes in at almost the same time every two months, with exactly the same figure on it*. Frankly, if you can't manage that you're in trouble.

adam

*Unintentional humour

Ryaner

We were getting a bill from esat once a month and a bill from eircom every two months. The eircom bill and esat bill were two weeks apart too at the time. My mam found it easier to just have one bill every two months which is why we went back.

Also the cps system we had caused a number of problems with the line and had to be replaced twice.

dahamsta

A bill is a bill, you write a cheque, tear that and the invoice stub off and stick 'em in an envelope, fire on a stamp and stick it in the postbox next time you're passing one. Sure it's "easier", but what's it going to save you, a minute and a half six times a year? A half a minute if you have DD?

Sorry, I'm not trying to diss your mother or anything, I just... don't get it. Never have, it's always struck me as a very lame excuse for settling for same-same.

adam

Morgoth

Yeah I don't understand the two-bills problem people have either. Eircom every two months is a DD of ~72 euro or whatever ISDN rental is these days. UTV is about 55 euro/month for calls + net, again DD deduction from the ol' bank account.

Even if you use cheques, then one bill comes in the post bi-monthly and never changes and the other bill (for me) comes monthly via email and changes only slightly. It's not hard or cumbersome to do a very simple thing twice instead of once when the actual monetary saving is profound!

ednwireland

the only problem i've seen is serious degredation of internet dialup dpeed when using cps must be something to do with being in donegal and the breakout happening in dublin, know a couple of people who have gone back because of this.

Sleipnir

Yeah the auld CPS causing failure is more BS from eircom INHO.
My parents got a call from a winback rep and was given a flat refusal.
30 minutes later the line went dead and stayed dead for almost two weeks.
"Sorry Sir, there seems to be a problem on your line"

very suspicious.

Ryaner

Personally I dont see the problem but she did. The current esat offer would save us alot of money so we going to that and I'm paying for BB myself. If the bills drop I get money towards BB so.
If the two bills thing did go I'm sure alot more people would stay with the other companys. My mam wasnt expecting a second bill from eircom because no one said anything a the time. She understands this time so we see. The cps box doesnt effect BB does it?

Eurorunner

Well if genghis and ryaner are making the switch - this thread is already worthwhile!:)
Remember folks, if the subject comes up, dont hold back in telling people how they could save some dosh - even if your tired of bringing it up.
You'll be doing them (and yourself/the country, etc.) a favour. Every cent thats diverted from €ircons coffers is a cent better spent.

oscarBravo

Originally posted by Ryaner
The cps box doesnt effect BB does it?

What CPS box? CPS these days is done at the exchange - Eircom route all calls from your phone to the 3rd party network instead of through their own.

Ryaner

We signed up to Esat way back when they first started up. Our original cps was inside the house. The second one they installed was outside where the phone enters the house. Think that one is still there tho

Sarsfield

Originally posted by Morgoth
Yeah I don't understand the two-bills problem people have either.

I don't understand it either. However, this evening I saw a TV ad for BT. The theme was a win-back customer, who returned to BT because she didn't like the inconvenience of multiple bills!

If BTs research says it merits an expensive advertising campaign then I think we can take it for granted that it IS a big issue for Joe Public.