FTC wants AT&T to kick in $4bn to help balance US budget. Why? Some dodgy ads or something America's trade watchdog is seeking $3.95bn in damages from AT&T over allegations of dodgy marketing by its DirecTV wing. The FTC this week dragged the US telco into a district court in Oakland, California, claiming the satellite TV biz lied to customers about subscription costs. The case will be heard and decided by Judge …
With the possible exception of the cancellation fee, Comcast does all of those as well. Of course, if you can read the microtype lettering at rapid speed, you'll find out they do these as well. I guess microtype notification qualifies as informing the customer. Or DirectTV forgot to spend enough in campaign donations and employed enough regulators between spells as regulators.
Not only DirecTV, but AT&T. I commented earlier here about an ad mailed to me from AT&T that I would call deceptive. It told me I could get fiber Internet for only $50 a month. But the "small print" (which was quite small) referenced "other required services" which were not named. Nor priced. So here's an ad telling me I can have fast Internet for $50, but it is, at best, misleading as there are going to be other hidden costs.
Why not just be HONEST and tell me (and any other potential customer) how much your service will cost me each month? Why all the smoke and mirrors? I was somewhat interested in the service, but the ad was so dodgy (not to mention how dodgy AT&T is as a corporation) that I binned it.
Why do these corporations think it's a good idea to lie to people and try to lock them into confusing, tricky contracts so they can shaft them? This is good customer relations?
Why do these corporations think it's a good idea to lie to people and try to lock them into confusing, tricky contracts so they can shaft them? This is good customer relations?
Simples really.... most sheeple don't read the fine print nor have an interest in doing so. They see the $50 per month and jump without any due diligence. In some ways, it's like decades ago, furniture stores always advertised in shouty letters: SALE!!! Well.. yeah.. everything was for sale but the prices were never reduced. It took a lot of effort to get regulations in place to counter this. It was weasel wording at it's best to play on buyer's emotions. Same thing with the current crowd.
That's not allegedly misleading, that's theft plain and simple.
A one time $20 cancellation fee might have been reasonable, and something a consumer
might reasonably expect. But no customer would reasonably expect tht cancelling a service
would not reduce their bill.
I have yet to see another service provider for cable TV, satellite TV or broadband service of any kind that wasn't setup the same way. Anything advertised by every one of them boldly claims a low price for a service you cannot possibly obtain without additional costs at absurd rates.
When AT&T was the only long distance phone service provider, they would bill for anything they saw fit and let their customers argue over the charges. The local service providers were all in on the game and would add additional charges on the same bill. There was no way to fight without losing your service and getting even more charges to resume the "service."
Now that it's only one cable company and just the two satellite providers that can provide most TV channels, AT&T has bought into the satellite TV game and resumes their previous attitude toward customers. They seem to believe people are only there to be deceived and robbed in any way possible by the whim of their tiny corporate hearts.
Cox Communications = No BS
Of course they're a private company.
Comcast is the worst I've tried. When you sign up, just bend over... why wait in suspense? You know what's going to happen.
Seriously, I've tried and eventually cancelled every available ISP. They all try to scam you.
(Unfortunately Cox is only available in SOCAL)
It's so bad that I've settled with cellular data only (even with slow speeds), and cancelled TV entirely.
The industry is protected by bribes, ATT didn't get their bribe (I mean endorsement) in on time. That's going to cost them.
How do I get in on this law suit. Direct TV did what the suit here says and I had to pay for leaving Direct TV for another honest supplier.
I want to sue for 5 million as Direct TV exceeded the limitations of my medications, causing damage to myself, and severe mental stress on my family, as well as financial; damage due to my being on a fixed !00% disability From The VA for service connected disability.
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