Telus charging for incoming SMS

[tacsniper]

So they change the contract and this was posted in another forum about how you can get out of the contract w/o paying ECF... does anyone know if this is true?


I found this on another site and C/P it




Alright guys. First it was the Sprint ETF post, now Telus Wireless subscribers can get out of their contracts early with no ETF ...This notice is going to appear on your next paper bill... A Wikipost will be added for updates regarding this.


quote Notice of Text Messaging Increase
If you are not currently subscribed to a Messaging Package, beginning
March 2, 2008, the price for sending Text Messages to the U.S., Puerto
Rico, Canada and Mexico - as well as the price for receiving Text
Messages from anywhere - will increase from $0.15 to $0.20 per
message per recipient. The price to send an International Text Message
will remain $0.25 per message per recipient. If you do subscribe to a
Messaging Package, your package rates will stay the same. For
information regarding this change, please visit
http://support.vzw.com/faqs/TXT%2...rease.html. Please
consult your Customer Agreement for information about rate changes.

This only applies to customers like me who aren't in a subscribed messaging package. Since this is a change in contract , you can get out of your contracts early without the ETF fee. For reference, you can go back the this post about how to do it...http://forums.slickdeals.net/show...8&t=427435

EDIT: Sorry guys I was tired when I posted this at night and I didn't click on the url, I just copy and pasted the section off the bill that I viewed online...personally I haven't gotten my paper bill yet so...
Anyways like Ken said, the link above shows last years messaging increase but is effective March 2, 2008...and for those not on their cell phone call 1(800)922-0204

Thanks Stix for the post!

Ok I have cancelled 5 peoples accounts this way. It is simple and effective and no arguing.

1. Call *611
2. Select 4 on options
3. Select 2 which should be cancellations
4. Say good day I read about the text message increase and as stated in my contract I would like to cancel. And read them this:

UNLESS OTHERWISE PROHIBITED BY LAW, WE CAN ALSO CHANGE PRICES AND ANY OTHER CONDITIONS IN THIS AGREEMENT AT ANY TIME BY SENDING YOU WRITTEN NOTICE PRIOR TO THE BILLING PERIOD IN WHICH THE CHANGES WOULD GO INTO EFFECT. IF YOU CHOOSE TO USE YOUR SERVICE AFTER THAT POINT, YOU'RE ACCEPTING THE CHANGES. IF THE CHANGES HAVE A MATERIAL ADVERSE EFFECT ON YOU, HOWEVER, YOU CAN END THE AFFECTED SERVICE, HOWEVER, YOU CAN END THE AFFECTED SERVICE, WITHOUT ANY EARLY TERMINATION FEE, JUST BY CALLING US WITHIN 60 DAYS AFTER WE SEND NOTICE OF THE CHANGE."


Snoozing also stated you can use this if they state Text messaging is not part of your plan/contract



quote Charges and Fees We Set
You agree to pay all access, usage, and other charges and fees we bill you or that the user of your wireless phone accepted, even if you weren't the user of your wireless phone and didn't authorize its use. These include Federal Universal Service, Regulatory and Administrative Charges, and may also include other charges related to our governmental costs. We set these charges. They aren't taxes, aren't required by law, are kept by us in whole or in part, and the amounts and what's included are subject to change. You may have to pay fees to begin service or reconnect suspended service. Usage charges may vary depending on where, when, and how you call. You have a Home Rate and Coverage Area and a Local Calling Area (which may be different). When you call from inside a Local Calling Area to somewhere outside of it, or call from anywhere outside a Local Calling Area, there may be toll, regional calling, or long distance charges in addition to airtime. (We provide or select the long distance service for calls on our network.) When you make a call inside your Local Calling Area that uses a local phone company's lines (for example, a call to a typical home phone number), we may charge landline or connection fees. We charge airtime for most calls, including toll-free and operator-assisted calls. Additional features and services such as operator or directory assistance, call dialing, calling card use, Call Forwarding, data calls, automatic call delivery, voice mail, text messaging, and wireless Internet access, may have additional charges. Features such as Call Waiting, Call Forwarding, or 3-Way Calling involve multiple calls and multiple charges.

5. If they say there is no adverse effect ask them to state where that is defined in contract. And more over state that it is that you do not agree with the contract presented to you.

6. They will put you on hold and come back and let you off scott free

**UPDATE**
7.N19ghtmare posts You can not cancel your contract and sign back up to get a new phone. You must wait 90 days if you plan on doing so. If you want to get right back on it, you would have to sign up under someone else's name and SS number.

8. If you first do not succeed just hang up and try again if they are gonna do it they will within the first 10 minutes after that hang up and get a different person. Some are easy some are hardcore.

9. You can port numbers if it is important have them note account that it is to be closed at such and such date. Then call back again and tell them you want to port number before it is canceled. Again you may need to call a couple more time.

[DNSRadio]

This works,
my brother was on telus, and they jacked him on texting, his termination was something like $600 ( $20/ month x 30months ) {he just resigned}
and he didnt have to pay anything

they tried to give him free texting for 2 months , he said no.. and now he no longer is a telus cust.

easy as 1-2-3.



side note, i had to argue on his behalf, about he contract.
if the person your speaking with tells you they are going to leave notes on your account, tell them to go ahead, and tell them you want to talk to their manager... take it up as far as it can go, harass the shit out of the managers if they don't cancel the contract.
i did, and now he doesnt have to pay a dime to telus.

[em2ab]

Why does the support link go to Verizon?

[rmk]

Telus is fucking gay.

[kaput]

.

[tacsniper]

ok i just tried and cancellation dept offered me 250 SMS for free so that will waive all incoming SMS fees and I said no.. she said I will have to pay the ETF fee since I choose not to accept the solutions they offered.... is this true?

[badatusrnames]

Charging for texts is ridiculous - they use next to no system resources.

But of course, then no one would ever actually use their phone to make voice calls if they were free...

[avishal26]

Damn.. what if I call in and cancel my text bundle right now.. . and then call in a couple of days later to cancel my contract? :D

[S13_Ryan]

:drama:

[oilerfan4lyfe]

Don't mean to hijack your thread but this is probably a good spot to let people know I read on a previous bill of mine that Rogers rates went up as well...To text to the US it costs 25 cents per text instead of 15. Receiving non-premium texts with Rogers though is still free up till 2500 as far as I know regardless of where the person texting is texting you from (someone can correct me if I'm wrong?)

Also, if you have a text plan with Rogers, texting to the US used to be included (I believe) but is no longer included...so if you text someone in the States you have to pay 25 cents even if you pay 10 bucks a month for unlimited texting.

[TC2002]

I heard about this on the news today, decided to look it up and found this: http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=86506caa-903a-4dda-845b-e04667d34623

Get ready to pay for incoming text messages
Companies to bring in 15-cent levy on incoming text messages

Sarah Schmidt
Canwest News Service

Monday, July 07, 2008

OTTAWA - Cellphone users are about to be hit with new fees as two of Canada's telecommunications giants plan to bring in a levy on incoming text messages.

Bell Mobility will begin charging customers 15 cents per incoming text message on Aug. 8. Telus Mobility is moving to the same billing practice effective Aug. 24. Until now, their pay-per-use customers who send text messages have been charged a 15-cent fee per message, but it hasn't cost anything to receive them.

The pending new charge has sparked outrage on blogs, with customers saying they can't control who sends them messages, especially when spammers obtain their cell number or retailers send them unsolicited messages.

"This charge is unbelievable. If someone sends me "spam" on my Bell phone, I have to pay for it? I made the mistake of giving my cellphone number to a car rental agency and now I get spam text messages," a Bell customer ranted on a Canadian technology blog.

"I actually work for Bell and I think this incoming text messages being charged is bogus!" posted another.

Text messaging has ballooned in popularity since inter-carrier service came to Canada in 2002.

In its first year, there were 369,000 text messages sent every day, or 11 million annually. Today, Canadians send 45.4 million per day, according to the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association. And cellphone subscribers sent 4.1 billion in the first quarter of this year, close to the annual total of 4.3 billion sent in 2006 and on track to surpass the 10.1 billion sent last year.

Association spokesman Marc Choma said the phenomenon has moved beyond the teenage crowd - known as the "early adopters" - to parents, who use it as a "family management tool."

Telus Mobility spokesperson AJ Gratton cites this rapid growth as the reason for the new charge.

"The growth in text messages has been nothing short of phenomenal," Gratton said. "This volume places tremendous demands on our network and we can't afford to provide this service for free anymore."

Characterizing the annual growth in text traffic on Bell's wireless network as "massive," company spokesman Jason Laszlo said the result has been greater capacity, licensing and support costs.

He said all but one of Bell's North American competitors charge for both incoming and outcoming text messages.

Bell and Telus customers can avoid the charge by switching to Rogers, which says it has no plans to institute a fee to receive a text message. But Bell and Telus both charge penalties if customers break their contracts, at $20 for every month remaining on a broken contract up to $400.

"We just don't charge for it, and have no plans to. Now it's a unique differentiator for Rogers," company spokeswoman Elizabeth Hamilton said of the move to charge for incoming messages.

Howard Chui, based in the Toronto suburb of Richmond Hill, runs an online forum about the mobile phone industry in Canada. He isn't optimistic that consumers are going to win this fight. And he's not sure how long Rogers will hold out.

"I think overall customers will just have to take it," he said, characterizing the three Canadian carriers as an "oligopoly."

Rogers is dealing with its own customer backlash over its rate plans for the Apple iPhone, on store shelves on Friday. The company, which has an exclusive iPhone carrier arrangement with Apple Inc. in Canada, is offering monthly plans ranging from $60 to $155.

The proposed fee schedule has unleashed an online campaign against Rogers, under the tagline "Screwing Canadian iPhone customers since '08."

Canadians already pay more than Europeans and Americans for cellphone services. Industry Minister Jim Prentice acknowledged this fact in the spring when he opened Canada's wireless spectrum auction.

Industry Canada set aside 40 megahertz, out of a total 105, for smaller companies to compete against the established telecommunications giants. Prentice said "the intent behind the auction is lower prices, more choice for consumers.'"
© Canwest News Service 2008

[GQBalla]

ahaha telus once again for the lose -

i laughed when they said even spam messages count

[Dren]

Stupid they are doing this...
it will only be time before Rogers does this as well.

[avishal26]

Originally posted by rmk
Telus is fucking gay.

:werd:


But its about chosing the least gay of all .. and for me right now.. it seems to be Telus.

[ExtraSlow]

Company phone FTW!

[GingeRRRBeef]

it's kinda retarded when they charge you to send a txt msg and they charge you again to receive it.

[BokCh0y]

Anybody have a copy of the paper bill that states this? The biatch at Telus won't let me out unless I have something that states this 60 day agreement thing. I arguing with her and letting her know that I do not accept the agreement and I want out!!!!!


Originally posted by DNSRadio
This works,
my brother was on telus, and they jacked him on texting, his termination was something like $600 ( $20/ month x 30months ) {he just resigned}
and he didnt have to pay anything

they tried to give him free texting for 2 months , he said no.. and now he no longer is a telus cust.

easy as 1-2-3.



side note, i had to argue on his behalf, about he contract.
if the person your speaking with tells you they are going to leave notes on your account, tell them to go ahead, and tell them you want to talk to their manager... take it up as far as it can go, harass the shit out of the managers if they don't cancel the contract.
i did, and now he doesnt have to pay a dime to telus.

What the hell did you say to them to get out of the ETF fees?

[likwid]

Where can I find an official notification from Telus that states the charge for incoming texts? I would like to call them tonight and need to know what to say if they ask where it states that.

[zerocon]

Looking for a copy of where it states this....

Got my old contract that i signed printed up and it said nothing in regards to this... and telus already shut me down once but that was without this little gem of a piece of information... if anyone who has already done this could PM me and chat back and forward that would be great

[BokCh0y]

Yeah they ask you where you see that gem statement. You can bs with them and say it's in the service contract agreement....but no luck. I've gone through the whole thing and no where does cock sucking telus state that.....

To be honest, we are fucked.

[likwid]

Guess I'll be forking out $320 to cancel out my contract then

[dino_martini]

Originally posted by BokCh0y
Yeah they ask you where you see that gem statement. You can bs with them and say it's in the service contract agreement....but no luck. I've gone through the whole thing and no where does cock sucking telus state that.....

To be honest, we are fucked.

Thats pretty much the answer I got on HoFo. using the text messaging thing to get out of your contract and ECF is a no go.

[jfulton]

just phoned in ,,

loyalty department gave me free incoming texts for the duration of my contract .. 2 years , for both my phones

thanks for the post

[94CoRd]

If i've had unlimited text messaging for the last 2 years of my contract. Am I going to have to pay now to receive texts now??

[BokCh0y]

Originally posted by 94CoRd
If i've had unlimited text messaging for the last 2 years of my contract. Am I going to have to pay now to receive texts now??

As long as you have an exisiting txt package like the unlimited one, tehn you shouldn't have to pay for incoming. But if you have a package with like 150 txt msg's then, you still won't have eto pay for incoming but incoming will count on your overall 150 txt's.

[lint]

Telus Mobility spokesperson AJ Gratton cites this rapid growth as the reason for the new charge.

"The growth in text messages has been nothing short of phenomenal," Gratton said. "This volume places tremendous demands on our network and we can't afford to provide this service for free anymore."

Characterizing the annual growth in text traffic on Bell's wireless network as "massive," company spokesman Jason Laszlo said the result has been greater capacity, licensing and support costs.


You know what the kicker is? The system access fee that they collect is supposed to go towards these network upgrades. Quoted from telusmobility.com:


System Access Fee

The System Access Fee covers a number of costs, including: spectrum acquisition and licensing charges, contribution charges to help subsidize residential telephone service in rural and remote areas, costs associated with area code changes, invoicing requirements for special needs clients, relay services (TDD) and related costs. The remainder, if any, goes towards the costs of operating TELUS Mobility’s national wireless networks, including new equipment and installations, ongoing maintenance and technology upgrades.

So in essence they're really double billing the customer. And, after working for TM, I know that the "remainder, if any" is actually the entire amount. The SAF is pure margin, and doesn't go towards any costs except the bottom line.

Canadian telcos suck.

[nobb]

I bought a S640 phone off a fellow Beyond member and just had it activated under my current contract.

I asked the Telus customer service rep to disable text messaging and block all data, but he said that was not possible because I have a smartphone, and their system wont let them disable these services? The data thing doesnt bug me too much since I can disable it from within the phone. But does this mean I am forced to receive and pay for all my text messages? No choice?

[spikerS]

Why did you buy a smart phone if you are not going to use data and sms? trying to promote the image that you are baller when you are broke? get a regular phone man, that is what you are making this into.



Originally posted by lint


So in essence they're really double billing the customer. And, after working for TM, I know that the "remainder, if any" is actually the entire amount. The SAF is pure margin, and doesn't go towards any costs except the bottom line.


so, you were an accountant with Telus? you know this how? did you get to read the financial reports? or were you just a client care agent that the every day joe got to yell at?

I ask this because if you were an accountant with telus, or were high enough in the company to be able to make that statement as fact, you would know that you can now be sued because of the non disclosure agreement you would have signed with telus when promoted to that position....even if it is or isn't true.


and to correct a previous statement, all the sms bundles with telus include unlimited incoming sms, and do not count towards your package for outgoing. so if you have 30 outgoing sms, and 1 comes in, you still have 30 to send at no charge.

[lint]

Originally posted by spikers
so, you were an accountant with Telus? you know this how? did you get to read the financial reports? or were you just a client care agent that the every day joe got to yell at?

I ask this because if you were an accountant with telus, or were high enough in the company to be able to make that statement as fact, you would know that you can now be sued because of the non disclosure agreement you would have signed with telus when promoted to that position....even if it is or isn't true.


How would you know if my statement violated any non-disclosure agreements? Are you confirming my statement?


Originally posted by spikers
and to correct a previous statement, all the sms bundles with telus include unlimited incoming sms, and do not count towards your package for outgoing. so if you have 30 outgoing sms, and 1 comes in, you still have 30 to send at no charge.

If he asked to have sms disabled, wouldn't that indicate that he doesn't have an sms bundle? And without an sms bundle he will be charged for each text message that he receives.

[nobb]

My old phone broke and I needed a new one, so I guess buying a new smartphone without a data plan makes me a baller wannabe? Besides, I like the extra functionality and I also have wifi on campus, so why bother with data. I dont see how my choice of phones is any of your business.

I guess you have nothing better to do tonight than to flame?

[spikerS]

Originally posted by BokCh0y


As long as you have an exisiting txt package like the unlimited one, tehn you shouldn't have to pay for incoming. But if you have a package with like 150 txt msg's then, you still won't have eto pay for incoming but incoming will count on your overall 150 txt's.


Originally posted by spikers
and to correct a previous statement, all the sms bundles with telus include unlimited incoming sms, and do not count towards your package for outgoing. so if you have 30 outgoing sms, and 1 comes in, you still have 30 to send at no charge.



Originally posted by lint
If he asked to have sms disabled, wouldn't that indicate that he doesn't have an sms bundle? And without an sms bundle he will be charged for each text message that he receives.

Reading > Lint





Originally posted by lint



How would you know if my statement violated any non-disclosure agreements? Are you confirming my statement?



Originally posted by spikers
so, you were an accountant with Telus? you know this how? did you get to read the financial reports? or were you just a client care agent that the every day joe got to yell at?

I ask this because if you were an accountant with telus, or were high enough in the company to be able to make that statement as fact, you would know that you can now be sued because of the non disclosure agreement you would have signed with telus when promoted to that position....even if it is or isn't true.

again, reading > Lint.

I honestly don't have a clue, but a friend in Telus, that does deal with financial information that could confirm or deny it, told me about the non disclosure agreement he signed.





Originally posted by nobb
My old phone broke and I needed a new one, so I guess buying a new smartphone without a data plan makes me a baller wannabe? Besides, I like the extra functionality and I also have wifi on campus, so why bother with data. I dont see how my choice of phones is any of your business.

I guess you have nothing better to do tonight than to flame?

no, i was not flaming you at all, it just seemed to me that it is a waste of a smart phone, but hey, if it works for you, good for you i guess...


:dunno:

[tm88]

so without reading the enitre thread, is this still possible to get out of your contract for free. I just resigned with 10 months on my old one so i really have almost 4 years. After signing i felt like a idiot because i went to rogers and realized how much nicer the smart phones are there.
I would love to sign up with rogers now....

So anyone that read the enitre thread, is it still possible to do what the OP said>??

[spikerS]

no, at least not without paying out your contract.

[tm88]

shit,
o well...
thanks spikers,

[Quizzes]

Bumping an old thread...

Just found out I got charged $30 from Telus for a "Premium Message" at $5/page. One text message would take up two pages, so essentially I have to pay $10 per message. I have to wait for them to text again (charging me another $10) so I can reply "STOP" to cancel since I've already deleted the old messages.

Anyone else getting these spam messages and having to pay for it? It's stupid how Telus won't do anything about these messages.

[DannyO]

Originally posted by Quizzes
Bumping an old thread...

Just found out I got charged $30 from Telus for a "Premium Message" at $5/page. One text message would take up two pages, so essentially I have to pay $10 per message. I have to wait for them to text again (charging me another $10) so I can reply "STOP" to cancel since I've already deleted the old messages.

Anyone else getting these spam messages and having to pay for it? It's stupid how Telus won't do anything about these messages.

They charge because they get billed from the Premium Message provider, so they pass the bill onto the customer, if you don't know who is sending the SMS, give them a call as they can find out, or if you know the name, just check up for the number in google, its not the carriers that are really charging you, doesn't matter if its Telus, Rogers or Bell.

You either sent a SMS to one of those numbers like Jamster or Gizmodo, or you did some quiz online and gave it your phone number for the results, all these cell carriers are just service providers, same as your internet, if you choose to sign up on a website by accident and they charge you, you wouldn't call your internet provider asking them to credit you back would you?

[Shogged]

Originally posted by DannyO


They charge because they get billed from the Premium Message provider, so they pass the bill onto the customer, if you don't know who is sending the SMS, give them a call as they can find out, or if you know the name, just check up for the number in google, its not the carriers that are really charging you, doesn't matter if its Telus, Rogers or Bell.

You either sent a SMS to one of those numbers like Jamster or Gizmodo, or you did some quiz online and gave it your phone number for the results, all these cell carriers are just service providers, same as your internet, if you choose to sign up on a website by accident and they charge you, you wouldn't call your internet provider asking them to credit you back would you?


this:thumbsup:

[Quizzes]

Originally posted by DannyO


They charge because they get billed from the Premium Message provider, so they pass the bill onto the customer, if you don't know who is sending the SMS, give them a call as they can find out, or if you know the name, just check up for the number in google, its not the carriers that are really charging you, doesn't matter if its Telus, Rogers or Bell.

You either sent a SMS to one of those numbers like Jamster or Gizmodo, or you did some quiz online and gave it your phone number for the results, all these cell carriers are just service providers, same as your internet, if you choose to sign up on a website by accident and they charge you, you wouldn't call your internet provider asking them to credit you back would you?

Gotcha!
Still a shitty deal though. They probably got it from the Do Not Call list.