Product Refresh Discussion

[#1]

Yes - but there is also a £25 setup fee for all products
If I remember correctly it used to be £40
This is for new customers not for moving between products

[#2]

I missed that.  I thought it only applied to new customers.  I didn’t realise it applied to everyone signing up for ‘Extra’.
I think I’ll cancel and go back to BBYW3.

[#3]

Read my post again

Quote

This is for new customers not for moving between products

[#4]

Hi all.
Weekends being the only time I get to look at personal broadband matters...I am today thinking of "upgrading" from PlusNet Broadband Premier Option 1 20Gb at £21.99 to PlusNet Extra 60Gb at £11.49.
I have a few questions which are unlikely to get answered on my ticket before Mon/Tue.
I am in Market Area 3, so apparently the new rate of £11.49 will be fixed. Exchange details from the Sam Knows website: http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange/WMRUG
I have a Draytek Vigor 2820n router.
I have some PlusNet webspace and a static IP. I gather from previous helpful posters that any benefits I currently get from my existing package will be maintained regardless of which package I move to.
Questions:
1. I am in an ADSL2+ area. I currently get 3.68mbps down, 0.29mbps up. On the PlusNet Product Change page, I am quoted an "Estimated speed: 4.5Mb". When I click the link "why is this speed estimate lower", I get the following explanation (which looks out of date i.t.o. product options):

Quote

Your telephone exchange has been upgraded to use the latest generation of broadband, called ADSL2+. This offers an 'up to' 20Mb service. To take advantage of ADSL2+ speeds, you'll need to choose either Plusnet Pro or Plusnet Premium. All our Value accounts use MaxDSL, which offers speeds of 'up to' 8Mb.

On the Product Change page, the estimated speed of 4.5Mb is quoted for Extra, Value and Pro. I don't understand. Any suggestions?

2. VPN: The PlusNet Extra table on the Download Speeds page (http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/download_speeds.shtml#premiumSpeeds) shows VPN speeds between 6pm-midnight as being limited to 2mbps. As I do a lot of VPN work after hours, is there any way to customise my Extra package to improve VPN performance during these hours?

3. Billing: my monthly direct debit is due around now (it's not showing in my online bank statement as of this morning). If I switch from PlusNet Broadband Premier Option 1 to PlusNet Extra today, will I be credited the difference?
Kind regards,
Greg.

[#5]

welcome to the forum.
Yes all your goodies can be carried over, but you have to be specifc about the static IP and ask for it in your change request
They dont normally change package mid billing, they do it at the actual date.
Dont know about VPN
When switched over you initially will be on 21cn, then get manually put n ADSL2 a few days later

[#6]

Thanks pierre_pierre.
Would Mandy or one of the PlusNet team be able to comment?
Kind regards,
Greg.

[#7]

Quote from: pierre_pierre

Yes all your goodies can be carried over, but you have to be specifc about the static IP and ask for it in your change request

When I've changed products before, my static IP has always been carried over.
Having only found out about the product refresh while looking at the Forums today, I signed up to go to Extra from Premium (introductory reduced price is on its last month, so instead of going up to £15.99 next billing date it will now be going down to £11.49 as I'm on a Market 3 exchange - neat, eh?) but via the Connections Settings panel rather than requesting it via a Question. Does your comment mean I'll have to raise a question this time to keep it?
BTW, I don't seem to be able to find any record of me ordering the change yet, not even as a closed question which is what happened when I went from BBYW to Premium in January.

P.S. Ah, it does appear in my Questions but I've only just found it tonight though it's timed around when I signed up.

[#8]

its just a precaution, a couple (Not a lot) did lose theirs and ended up with a different IP, better safe than sorry

[#9]

Thanks for the warning then. Plenty of time before it goes through - well, a week anyway!

[#10]

Quote from: Laser

On the speeds page (http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/download_speeds.shtml) it describes Extra as being "Designed for serious Internet users, ideal for all Internet activities" whereas the apparently superior Pro says it is only "Ideal for all general Internet activities and occasional gaming and VPN. Designed to cater for some, although light, binary USENET, Peer-to-Peer, VPN or music/video downloads." (my emphasis).  Not quite what I expected... What happens if you hammer P2P or VPN on Pro? The new Extra package and the price drop on Pro looked attractive until I saw the Market 1/2 price. I really dislike the way the higher price is hidden in in the small print, very dishonest.    The Market 1/2 pricing (not just of Pro) is killing the attractiveness of the new products compared to legacy packages. It would be interesting to see whether statistics of pre-Market-split PN customers who haven't changed to newer packages vs. Exchange Market supports this view.

The usage allowance on Pro wouldn't last long if you hammered P2P or VPN, hence the 'light' qualifications. The speeds would be excellent though.
I understand the point re Market 1 and 2, but the vast majority live in Market 3 areas, so raising prices here would defeat the objective of the wholesale reduction.

[#11]

Quote from: Jessica

I missed that.  I thought it only applied to new customers.  I didn’t realise it applied to everyone signing up for ‘Extra’. I think I’ll cancel and go back to BBYW3.

It only applies to new customers signing up, not existing customers switching product.

[#12]

Quote from: hyperafrica

Questions: 1. I am in an ADSL2+ area. I currently get 3.68mbps down, 0.29mbps up. On the PlusNet Product Change page, I am quoted an "Estimated speed: 4.5Mb". When I click the link "why is this speed estimate lower", I get the following explanation (which looks out of date i.t.o. product options): Quote Your telephone exchange has been upgraded to use the latest generation of broadband, called ADSL2+. This offers an 'up to' 20Mb service. To take advantage of ADSL2+ speeds, you'll need to choose either Plusnet Pro or Plusnet Premium. All our Value accounts use MaxDSL, which offers speeds of 'up to' 8Mb. On the Product Change page, the estimated speed of 4.5Mb is quoted for Extra, Value and Pro. I don't understand. Any suggestions? 2. VPN: The PlusNet Extra table on the Download Speeds page (http://www.plus.net/support/broadband/speed_guide/download_speeds.shtml#premiumSpeeds) shows VPN speeds between 6pm-midnight as being limited to 2mbps. As I do a lot of VPN work after hours, is there any way to customise my Extra package to improve VPN performance during these hours? 3. Billing: my monthly direct debit is due around now (it's not showing in my online bank statement as of this morning). If I switch from PlusNet Broadband Premier Option 1 to PlusNet Extra today, will I be credited the difference? Kind regards, Greg.

Hi Greg,
To answer your questions in turn:
1) This is an estimate from the line check when it was last run for your line. If you'd like to post your line stats we'll be able to give you a much better estimate. You're correct in saying that the information there is outdated, I'll get someone to sort that.
2) There's no way to customise the Extra product, but 2Mb should be adequate for the vast majority of VPN situations.
3) The change will be scheduled for your next billing date, so no credit will be needed.

[#13]

So before I make the jump from BBYW pro to the New Pro the only difference will be the reduced price? All my download speeds will remain at line speed and i can request to keep my ip address.
Sadly no ADSL 2 for me until 2011 😞
Last time I changed my product to the one with 80Gb downloads and the speed difference was dramatic. I'm more than happy to pay for higher speeds.
edit:
will i also still keep 1 month contract?

[#14]

Quote from: Mand

Quote from: Laser Pro says it is only "Ideal for all general Internet activities and occasional gaming and VPN. Designed to cater for some, although light, binary USENET, Peer-to-Peer, VPN or music/video downloads." (my emphasis).  Not quite what I expected... What happens if you hammer P2P or VPN on Pro? The usage allowance on Pro wouldn't last long if you hammered P2P or VPN, hence the 'light' qualifications. The speeds would be excellent though.

It seems times have changed...

Quote from: http

Broadband Premier is designed for all kinds of Internet activity, including file downloading, as with peer-to-peer or Binary USENET... Broadband Premier Option 1 is provided with 20GB allowance

Quote from: Mand

I understand the point re Market 1 and 2, but the vast majority live in Market 3 areas, so raising prices here would defeat the objective of the wholesale reduction.

I'm thinking "vast majority" might be an overstatement, being as I've seen figures of around 70% being bandied about. (Although precious little in the way of easy-to-find official statements. It's almost like they don't want you to know... )
Anyway, that aside... The price differential seems very large - generally about £6.50. Is that a realistic figure of how much "discount" there is for that market, or do we have a situation where the Market 1 customers are subsidising headline-grabbing prices for the Market 3 regions?
And if it really is "vast majority" (i.e. 90% or so), then a 50p increase for the 90% would allow the remaining 10% to have nearly as low a price.

[#15]

Hi there.
The official reasoning and explanation for the UK Market split can be found here.
http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/wbamr07/statement/
Ofcom's underlying principle for regulation is to allow competition to grow and develop in these areas.