Me & UPC: Giving a little credit where it's due

Nollog

dub45 wrote: »

No its your world. And if you tolerate a consistent lack of integrity from a company then thats the way it will stay. What incentive is there for a company to behave properly if people like you are blinded by fast bb speeds and will put up with a lack of integrity from business. UPC's reflex is sadly not towards behaving with integrity and they consistently prove this.

Their current behaviour in relation to the price increase is ample proof of this.
What is more basic for a business than to inform customers directly of a price increase?

The many customers of their so called "Unlimited" products who received letters from them recently got a sharp wake up call and a realisation that they had been deceived.

Thats the way it will continue to be if people like yourself put up with it.

eircom's ngb isn't 8mb, nor is it unlimited.
Yet they say it is and have the same 250gb limit(the unlimited package).

You compare services and weigh good v. bad in everything, not just irish isp's

dub45

hightower1 wrote: »

+1 , No ISP is perfect, UPC, Eircom, Vodafone etc... all of them.
In fact no company full stop is perfect.
We accept this as the way of the world not just the way of UPC.
Although some seem to focus on UPC at every opportunity possible.
If its not too rude to ask , DUB45 are you a UPC customer? If not who is your ISP?

My constant criticism of UPC is not a demand for perfection. No company is perfect nor can they be. There is a very big difference between an aspiration to provide good service and being honest.

There is far too much confusion on on here in respect of that.

As I constantly say on here good products or service do not excuse a lack of integrity.

Want some examples?

The "unlimited" debacle - the deliberate deception of customers and the refusal until recently to comply with Comreg's policy on unlimited products.

Their own constant failure to comply with their own Terms and Conditions. This is by no means the first time they have failed to notify customers properly of price increases. They changed their Terms and Conditions as recently as last September - did anyone hear from them about that?

Their exploitation of the direct debit system to generate considerable amounts of money for themselves - a charge of €10.50 if your direct debit fails - a charge not made clear to customers when they are signing up for direct debits.

A price list which supposedly lists all the undefined charges which a customer is liable for regularly referred to in the Terms and Conditions and which doesn't exist. (and I have asked them where it can be found)

I have been deliberately lied to them in the recent past over the phone, by email and in a letter.

These are not the behaviours of a reputable company.

My complaints are not about service. UPC will become more and more dominant in the years ahead unless there is an extraordinary development. Such dominance is dangerous for the consumer (e.g. the current price rise for example at a time when the economy is in such a mess) and a company with such little regard for integrity is even more dangerous in such a dominant position.

I have been a customer of UPC and its various antecedents basically since shortly after the cabling of Dublin began.

There is no UPC bb in my area. I only use the service for FM radio and that service has generally been excellent over the years. Sadly UPC staff don't even seem aware anymore that they actually offer it and the FM stations are no longer listed on the website.

However due to my recent experience with them I decided to terminate my contract with them. I received a call from the retention team today coincidentally and even then I was given shall we say "false" information about proposed price increases from their competitors.

If people decide UPC is for them thats fine of course but that judgement should take into account not just the products they offer but their overall behaviour because sooner or later it will impact on you as loads of customers have found out recently.

The ironic thing is that it is in their own interests to change their "reflex" but it is extremely difficult to change an organisation's culture once it has been established.

vibe666

yeah, but it's christmas, a time for forgiveness and happiness and joy and turkey & cake and sweets and super fast broadband.

hightower1 wrote: »

Who... who said that... come closer?! :cool:

welcome back again. we missed you.

dub45

vibe666 wrote: »

yeah, but it's christmas, a time for forgiveness and happiness and joy and turkey & cake and sweets and super fast broadband.

and honesty! And new years resolutions.....

vibe666

dub45 wrote: »

and honesty! And new years resolutions.....

and cake!

and drugs! :pac:

seriously, i've a slipped disc in my back after helping a stuck UPC van in the snow on a hill in navan. it's an old injury from the summer when i fell of a mechanical bull in portugal on my stag do. :cool:

seriously, i'm not joking. the UPC van thing was a couple of weeks ago when it first started snowing.

i'm on difene, ixprim, valium and diazepam and i've just about gone cuckoo.

if the zombie apocalypse happens any time soon i'll be okay cos i think i might just pass for one of them as it is.

maybe that's why i'm feeling so generous towards UPC at the minute, but i don't mind i'm still happy.

almost managed a smiley on every line there.

dub45

vibe666 wrote: »

and cake!

and drugs! :pac:

seriously, i've a slipped disc in my back after helping a stuck UPC van in the snow on a hill in navan. it's an old injury from the summer when i fell of a mechanical bull in portugal on my stag do. :cool:

seriously, i'm not joking. the UPC van thing was a couple of weeks ago when it first started snowing.

i'm on difene, ixprim, valium and diazepam and i've just about gone cuckoo.

if the zombie apocalypse happens any time soon i'll be okay cos i think i might just pass for one of them as it is.

maybe that's why i'm feeling so generous towards UPC at the minute, but i don't mind i'm still happy.

almost managed a smiley on every line there.

I knew it had taken something serious to turn you into a Hightower clone!

Cabaal

dub45 wrote: »

Why should you weigh the good against the bad? It's that sort of lazy attitude on the part of consumers that companies exploit.

Good products should not blind people to a lack of integrity.

Integrity in business should not be an option.

Tell me, pick one company in the whole of the world that is perfect.

Your expectations are not realistic, no company is perfect and so there will always be good and bad and its upto a customer to decided if the good outways the bad.

Many people believe Google are evil and do alot of underhanded stuff yet millions are happy with them, the same for Microsoft, the same for Eircom, Vodafone etc etc etc etc, it serves no purpose to get into a argument about the said company each time people want to talk about it....especially when the thread is to say something positive.

vibe666

i dunno, airtricity have been great so far for me.

admittedly its only been a month or so with them so far, but the overall impression they give is excellent.

anyway, merry christmas to one and all (and UPC).

luckyfrank

ill be going to magnet when my contract is up upc is useless for gaming

Freddie59

dub45 wrote: »

Sadly not and UPC do their fare share of non delivery as well.

It is sad that getting what we pay for becomes "remarkable".

:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

Tea_Bag

luckyfrank wrote: »

ill be going to magnet when my contract is up upc is useless for gaming

what about it is useless? are you getting dropped packages or high ping? im getting neither, and i play online way too much.

im happy with UPC's Broadband. ive been using it for over 2 years now, and its only been down once that i can remember in that time (for a day)

their TV service on the other hand.... is just terrible.

Dotsie~tmp

After 7 or 8 years with UTV internet i recently switched to UPC. UTV had been choking the service so gradually over the years I had literally forgotten what good broadband was like, it really is that bad with UTV. UPC is lighning for me even at peak times. I also game alot and I would describe latency/pl as very good at this point.

_DMac_

credit where credit is due. since my issue's with dc's and lag were fixed about 2 months ago it has been perfect ever since. well played upc. keep up the god work and go handy on us poor recessionee's with the price hikes

billyboy01

NTL were a great company have been with them for TV and BB since 2003, with no bother from them, no matter how much I used there service. Then UPC took over and within a year received warning letters and was wrongly overcharged for nothing, without any proof or explanation:mad:. So time for a change! luckily I have a wide choice of ISP's in my area! Which offer similar or better options then UPC!:)

vibe666

billyboy01 wrote: »

luckily I have a wide choice of ISP's in my area! Which offer similar or better options then UPC!:)

just out of curiosity, which ISP's are those?

particularly considering UPC's 100mbps upgrades and the expected free 60mbps upgrades for 30mbps users in february.

PixelTrawler

vibe666 wrote: »

just out of curiosity, which ISP's are those?

particularly considering UPC's 100mbps upgrades and the expected free 60mbps upgrades for 30mbps users in february.

Id be very suprised at a free bump to 60. Surely it would kill 100 orders stone dead considering the price difference?

That have to do something with the 250gb cap too. Also 60 is just outside what the standard modems can deliver, think its 55 max.

billyboy01

vibe666 wrote: »

just out of curiosity, which ISP's are those?

particularly considering UPC's 100mbps upgrades and the expected free 60mbps upgrades for 30mbps users in february.

lol, if you believe that, then pigs fly, Ireland is not in a recession/depression and Nama is just a Government joke being played on the little people of Ireland!:rolleyes: 100mb is retailing at 80 yoyo's a month plus 7.50 if you dont have an UPC tv package! Maybe 35-40mb if they are feeling good in the Marketing Dept. with the 250gb No caps! lol:D:confused: I have read the AUP on this new 100mb service, it comes with a 500gb data transfer limit a month. A bit like being given a Bugatti veyron but not being allow to drive it faster then 50km/h on a 100 metre road!

No No time to try another company!

vibe666

billyboy01 wrote: »

lol, if you believe that, then pigs fly, Ireland is not in a recession/depression and Nama is just a Government joke being played on the little people of Ireland!:rolleyes:

would you like to take a bet on it?

i've heard it on here from someone who has heard it from two separate UPC employees and i'be heard it from a friend who was told by the UPC engineer who installed his 30mbps that there is supposed to be a 60mbps bump around february time.

it wasn't that long ago that people said the 100mbps upgrades would never arrive, but they're being rolled out now so why is it so hard to believe.

all you have to do is look at the many other UPC territories in europe with 100mbps or 120mbps broadband and they all have a 50-60mbps package to bridge the gap between the other packages.

thanks to their rather inconsistent upgrade policies they already have people on various combinations of 1mbps, 5mbps, 6mbps, 8mbps, 10mbps, 15mbps, 20mbps and 25mbps packages in addition to the 30mbps packages so why doesn't it make sense to bridge the gap between the 30mbps and 100mbps packages?

deceit

I switched to upc because of there 30mb package as soon as our lines where upgraded. The first day it was 30mb constant, second day was getting 50mb which was brilliant but since then have not had broadband and have been without it over christmas, has came on today but have to keep resetting the modem every 10mins to get any kind of service, will be calling tomorrow to make sure it is fixed and if is not am going back to eircom, (they may be dearer and slower but at least in the years have been with them have never been without broadband).

luckyfrank

Tea_Bag wrote: »

what about it is useless? are you getting dropped packages or high ping? im getting neither, and i play online way too much.

im happy with UPC's Broadband. ive been using it for over 2 years now, and its only been down once that i can remember in that time (for a day)

their TV service on the other hand.... is just terrible.

Im getting erattic jitter getting from 20% to 40% each time

line quality on pingtest gives me a b rating, online gaming works fine for some but for others it's just pants, it tends to be ok when im connected to someone from ireland or the uk but futher afield it just goes down south

Connrang

Evening all,

I was a customer with UPC when I lived in Belgium and the service there was outstanding from installation to downloading, no issues, direct debit each month and never seen or heard from the in almost 5 years.

When Chorus was taken over by them I hoped for the same level of service and the investment they put into their network showed they were here for the long haul.

I currently have 30 Mb, 2 x HD boxes and home phone from them and costs is reasonalble. I had one or two issues and their techs were very good, it can take up to 3-4 days to get a tech but I've noticed the contractors take all the business they can get so the wait time can be as little as 2 days.

I recently go a very cold letter informing me that I was over my download/upload limit by 4%. Now call me picky but based over the time I was with them and for such a little amount I was nearly taken out the back and shot....

My only bug with them is that they know just how much I download over my connection but I'm not allowed to monitor it. Within the house there is a PC and several laptops/iPad/phones so its not possible to keep track.

So MR UPC, gives us the ability that we had with Eircom and BT to monitor our downloads and I'll be happy.

Oh, and thanks for the 100 Mb and 500 Gig limit :D:D

vibe666

Connrang wrote: »

My only bug with them is that they know just how much I download over my connection but I'm not allowed to monitor it. Within the house there is a PC and several laptops/iPad/phones so its not possible to keep track.

So MR UPC, gives us the ability that we had with Eircom and BT to monitor our downloads and I'll be happy.

if it was me then i'd be asking them for a way to monitor your connection and if they can't provide you with that then ask them how they expect you to keep within their limits?

tell them you'd be happy to go to court to argue the case if they'd like and see what happens.

unfortunately for me, i've been monitoring my usage closely via my router since i got it and only went over the first month that they actually implemented the 250gb limit (as i didn't know it was even there at the time) and have adjusted my usage accordingly to keep within those limits ever since.

i've actually gone over slightly this month due to a rogue browser session gobbling up 10gb of bandwidth over the course of the last two days that i didn't notice till this evening, but aside from that i've always kept within the 250gb limit. my usage as it stands is at 255gb for this last calendar month and 257gb for the last rolling 30 days, so i guess i'll just keep my fingers crossed.

i only ever received one letter almost 2 years ago now though and have kept within my limits since, so fingers crossed i'll be okay with this one, it is christmas after all.

deceit

Just want to show what happened to my connection now its fixed for the moment so you know i'm in a decent area. I dont think you could ask for better than this on a 30mb connection with 3mb upload only wish was constantly like this

Sure the 250GB cap and no means to monitor, sucks. Though I just bridged the modem to a dd-wrt one so I have the ability now.

I had to call customer (tech) care there last week over a dead line. Couldn't believe that it was an Irish guy on the other line, now I know that sounds bad, though when you have to call other companies tech support such as three and get very little feedback only a rehearsed babble babble, speaking to someone who you and they can understand, comes as a refreshing surprise.

I informed him of the pertinent issues I was experiencing, he then made an appointment for an engineer to call out within 48 hours.

So far so good, with these guys.

vibe666

NoDrama wrote: »

I had to call customer (tech) care there last week over a dead line. Couldn't believe that it was an Irish guy on the other line, now I know that sounds bad, though when you have to call other companies tech support such as three and get very little feedback only a rehearsed babble babble, speaking to someone who you and they can understand, comes as a refreshing surprise.

maybe he was on a gap year in India and got a job in their call centre?

actually, i'm pretty sure its just the first line support that's in india and all they can tell you to do is the ol' "turn it off & on" trick and log the ticket, 2nd line afaik are in dublin.

dubtom

Only got UPC just before Christmas,30meg package, so far it's been fine,I used the dongle up to yesterday and was getting between 10-12 megs, the wife was getting 17/18 megs downstairs on her laptop so I'm not sure if my 12 megs was down to the UPC dongle. Connected by cable yesterday was my results have improved 3 fold.
[URL="[URL=http://www.speedtest.net][IMG]http://www.speedtest.net/result/1090516422.png[/IMG][/URL]"][/url]

However, my ping test have been bad since day one.
[URL="[URL=http://www.pingtest.net][IMG]http://www.pingtest.net/result/31181577.png[/IMG][/URL]"][/url]
Packet loss has ranged from between 59% up to 87%, how do I fix this.
Overall I'm happy so far with UPC, such a relief not to have the evening and weekend timeouts with eircom.

moonboy52

dubtom wrote: »

Packet loss has ranged from between 59% up to 87%, how do I fix this.
.

Turn off IP flood detection on the Router / Modem.

jor el

dubtom wrote: »

Connected by cable yesterday was my results have improved 3 fold.

Cable is the only way to test speed, wireless is a needless bottleneck that will give you a false sense of problems where there aren't any. If you have to connect wirelessly, then you'll have to live with the reduced speed. For online gaming, you're better off using an Ethernet connection too, as Wifi can introduce lag.

dubtom wrote: »

However, my ping test have been bad since day one.
how do I fix this.

moonboy52 wrote: »

Turn off IP flood detection on the Router / Modem.

Unless there's some problem that needs fixing (not just pingtest, which you don't need to fix), then don't do anything. If you experience issues with gaming, or P2P apps, then try what moonboy said, but if you can't see any problem other than Pingtest fails, then don't change anything.

dubtom wrote: »

Overall I'm happy so far with UPC.

Then, if it ain't broke...

vibe666

jor el wrote: »

Then, if it ain't broke...

fix it till it is? :pac:

colinod0806

vibe666 wrote: »

fix it till it is? :pac:

its that kind of attitude got me where i am today:pac: