How long before Plusnet put up their prices to follow big brother

[#1]

OT: Please ignore - notification behaviour test - 6 posters since my prior post here.

[#2]

Quote from ISPreview:

This year BT are also promising to fix line faults faster for all of their voice and broadband customers by “upgrading them to a higher level of service, which means we will send an engineer 24 hours faster than before, if a home visit is needed“.

Well Plusnet won't be doing that will they, it takes them 3x longer than that (at least) to look at a fault ticket and that's after you've managed to get one raised   Never mind stirring Openretch into effective action

[#3]

The last PN price increase was in the autumn I just managed to pay for the LRS at the pre autumn 2015 price.

The second PN price increase this year wil therefore be in the September-October period

Hopefully there will only be the one increase in prices this year and possibly it too will be in the autumn like last year!

[#4]

18.88 a month a land line that a lot of people might not use, is getting a bit steep.

[#5]

Lets be clear here, everyone connected to the internet, not using Virgin or a wireless services IS USING their BT supplied landline.  It needs to be managed and repaired however it is (or is not used).

The use of that line for voice is not a significant cost overhead.  Given that BB needs a better quality line than that required to deliver voice, voice only lines need a lower level of repair and maintenance than that required for good BB service.

There seems to be a "I only want to pay for what I need" attitude on this matter. If that's the case, I'm sure that those putting forth this perception will be happy to see the cost of a 'phone' line, for phone only use, fall whilst the cost for a 'broadband' line rises to reflect the true higher costs of providing and maintaining a line capable of delivering and fulfilling the never ending thirst for faster and faster speeds at a lower and lower cost per volume of use?

[#6]

---

@trekrich wrote:

18.88 a month a land line is getting a bit steep.

---

And completely unrealistic.

It will all end in tears and not for the customer.

I believe that like me most want a basic landline and basic broadband.

Without all the "free" extras.

[#7]

The Gov't Minister concerned Ed Vaizey has said that fixed line fee should be scrapped.

[#8]

All that does is to show that the concerned government minister has not got a clue what he's talking about, what's worse neither does Ofcom.

Sadly the most sensible comment in that article comes from BT Openreach "Anyone using broadband is using the line ... we need to be clearer on how we price things." Which is what I said above.

Network connection + service packages.  One should note that plusnet's prices refer to "line rental" not "phone line rental".

[#9]

OMG Vaizey is talking utter [-Censored-]s!  (ref AlaricAdair link)

But when has a politician suffered for jumping onto the next bandwagon to come along and fan the flames of a good argument when he should be discharging the duties of a government minister with due diligence 

[#10]

I am not in complete agreement with Mr Vaizey or OFCOM, but if you listen to Mr Vaizey in the select committee and DCMS meetings on parliament.tv you can see he does generally understand what is going on, but he is often having to simplify everything he says so that the majority of people can get a grip on what he says. That is a fine line to walk, those who know the details and reality, like on this forum, will of course spot them and be concerned.

[#11]

If simplification of the message so that the masses could understand it was the intent, then suggesting that people who only use broadband don't use the 'phone' line and therefore should not have to pay for it, was well wide of the mark.

It creates the wrong perceptions.  With many of the ISP's current broadband give-a-ways the only income is the line rental.  Given that is the same for broadband and non-broadband users alike, phone only subscribers are subsidising broadband only users.  If you want a simple message which all can understand, I suggest this one is much more near the mark.

[#12]

I'm amused by the idea that billing should follow the pattern of the mobile phone industry to be understood by the callow yoof. If we examine that you buy a shiny new mobile phone to flash about about paid for over two years including minutes, texts and download. But the transmitter towers, backhaul and connections through to internet and phone systems are free 

Until reality is explained to the great unwashed all debate is futile 

[#13]

---

@Townman wrote:

If simplification of the message so that the masses could understand it was the intent, then suggesting that people who only use broadband don't use the 'phone' line and therefore should not have to pay for it, was well wide of the mark.

---

See, Yes you understand and see the big picture, most do not.

[#14]

Lets be clear here, everyone connected to the internet, not using Virgin or a wireless services IS USING their BT supplied landline. It needs to be managed and repaired however it is (or is not used).

And virgin doesn't have to maintain a "line"? This argument isn't very compelling.

[#15]

Whatever you want to call it, there still needs to be a bit of something to carry the electrons!  Do you think they arrive at your home by magic?

Virgin have a 'circuit' just the same as BT based services have a 'phone line' - with or without a phone service on it.