vbthedog

Generally I like Telstra. I really do! But the last few weeks have tested my patience and it is not over yet. This story revolves around a mobile phone and a wireless broadband connection. So nothing overly difficult to work out; I moved to the country, can’t expect what is available in the city, but Telstra through technology, can provide a reasonable solution. That was my expectation.

What I have had problems with is trying to get the various divisions to talk to each other, and also be able to simply talk to them!

For example, in the last 48 hours, my wireless (HPSA+) broadband connection, which is my lifeline to the world in many areas – internet, TV, radio – was ‘throttled’ as the bill had not been paid. I have a 10GB plan which costs me $109/month.

By contrast, my brother, 6Km away can get ADSL 2 with 100GB download, and also had an offer for free local calls, cut price STD and mobile calls and other goodies for the same price. But he also gets free to air TV and radio through normal channels.

Anyway, as I was throttled (I never saw the bill in contest by the way) I had the need to call Telstra – note NOT Big Pond – to resolve this issue. Nine phone calls later, I finally got through to someone. You see, although I rang 125111, the number on the web and their bills - for access to Telstra Wireless Broadband – note NOT Big Pond – I kept getting answered by a Big Pond operator. In the Philippines mostly although I suspect a few Mumbais or similar in the mix. They wouldn’t say.

Every time I was transferred on, I would end up in some oddball department  such as iPad SIM activation, mobile phone faults and others I couldn’t understand the accents of. Finally, I was put through to accounts, also suspiciously in the Philippines, and was advised the account had a bar on it due to the non-payment of the bill. I promised to pay it next day at the local Post Office, and ring back immediately with the receipt number. I specifically asked for the direct line number to ring to advise of this, and duly kept my promise, rang back and was told the bar would be removed within 24 hours.

28 hours later, on a supposedly 4Mbs+ link, (that I had got regularly before), I was getting at best 256kps and my work was running at a crawl. And an unreliable one at that.

As a publisher and journalist dealing with large images for print, this was insufferable, so once again I rang 125111 – as told, the correct number for Telstra Wireless Broadband contact. Note,  NOT Big Pond. I again ended up going through the Big Pond merry-go-round, six times, before getting on to “Kelly on the Gold Coast”.

Thank the pixel gods for that. Over the next 20 minutes or so, Kelly sussed out where and who I should be talking to, organised the transfer of the call, and the issue was fixed. I explained to the nice lady in Telstra – note NOT Big Pond – Wireless Broadband about the 125111 versus 13-POND telephone number issue and she promised to look into it. The fact that 12 separate phone calls to 125111 kept putting me through to 13-POND means Telstra has a serious problem in this area – oh and of course I was the “first” to come across it! As a journo in IT, if I had a dollar for every time I have heard THAT statement, I would be very, very rich and not living in The Shed I can promise you.

There are two footnotes to this story:

If Telstra (and they are not alone in this) is serious about businesses in the country, bearing in mind I AM a business, need constant access and have a need for large uploads and downloads each month, then 10GB is a joke. I have been told my next bill will be $600+ as I went over the 10GB limit! As time goes on, business – both city and country based – are relying more and more on technology. Banks and farmers, musicians, artists and the local supermarket. Some do it by choice; others are forced into it by “systems”. But if the cost is as prohibitive as it is now, the cost of doing that business makes it impossible to do that business. If you know what I mean.

If I have to pay $600+ simply to have internet access, when someone in the city or a major town can get 10 times the access I get for $109, why would I stay here? It’s not as if I am in the middle of the Great Sandy Desert! I am 6 Kms from a major regional town for goodness sake!

I watch iView from the ABC as all I have is patchy coverage via normal means, have discovered 7NOW from Channel 7 (WIN and GWN (Prime) are so snowy and fuzzy, unless it’s something major I don’t watch) and SBS is only available for some weird reason after 8pm!), listen to Perth radio via the ‘net and *cough* get the occasional download for TV programs I cannot get. Dragon’s Den and Alan Sugar’s The UK Apprentice specifically.  Nothing overly extraordinary then.

So how’s this for a thought. In the country, 3 hours south of Perth, and too far from an exchange to get ADSL so forced to use HPSA+ wireless broadband, the technology designed for those that do NOT have the luxury access the city and major regional locale people get have to pay 10 times extra plus for it! And it’s not as if it is reliable…

How ridiculous is that! When I spoke to Telstra about this, I was informed that “it cost us millions to install the infrastructure, so someone has to pay”. I also spoke to the Department of Consumer Affairs who said they could not get involved in what a company charges for its services.

And yet, if I want a phone line put in, as I understand it, I *could* be in the middle of the Great Sandy Desert, and it would cost me no more than if I lived in Pyrmont. And the call charges are the same.

Rip off is such a dirty phrase. Opportunism anyone?