p2pnet - rss feed: Rogers iPhone fans: sheep to the slaughter
p2pnet news view | Mobiles:- Rogers was hung, drawn and quartered by online Canadians when, as p2pnet wrote recently, “it was revealed Apple was displeased with Rogers and its attempt to use the second coming of the iPhone, now popularly known online as the Jesus phone, to scam customers into three year contracts with pitiful resources.”
Rogers spokesman John Boynton resorted to what can only be (charitably) described as a fact realignment when he claimed Smithereens, a blog which said Apple was holding back the number of iPhones to be sold from Rogers outlets, had, “retracted most of its story”.
But it had done no such thing and meanwhile, you could be forgiven for thinking the Jesus phone does indeed represent the second coming for Canadians.
“Apple sells one million iPhones in first three days after release,” said a Canadian Press story filed, ironically, in New York.
“One million iPhones sold,” trumpeted 24 Hours Vancouver.
“Rogers Breaks Activation Record With iPhone Launch,” stated andPOP, Canada.
“Long lines as iPhone finally arrives,” noted the Financial Post, Canada.
“Tech fans queue to snap up iPhones,” declared the Ottawa Citizen.
But not everyone was having iPhone orgasms.
“Rogers iPhone 2nd most costly in the world,” said the CBC, going on »»»
According to CBCNews.ca’s iPhone iNdex, which compares basic service plans from the 27 carriers in 21 countries that have announced pricing for the device’s launch on Friday, Canadians who buy the device before Aug. 31 will be faced with a total minimum cost of $2,176 US over the course of the three-year deal they must sign with Rogers.
That is second only to the $2,554 US customers of Vodafone will pay in Italy with their two-year service agreement.
What’s that they say about fools and their money?
And, “Beware: A new iPhone 3G could cost you $6,132.74!,” said Digital Home.
Nor was GizMoreRepublic —- from whence came the pic on the right —- impressed.
It wrote »»»
The lambs of Apple lined up at Rogers stores across Canada last Friday to get their hands on the new must have accessory. Like a bra for a sagging self-image, the iPhone makes many Canadians feel relevant again. But shortages and service problems dogged Rogers big day beneath the Apple glow.
It went on »»»
Toronto’s Rogers Plus store was one of the few across Canada that was opened at 8 a.m. It was opened early to serve over 300 customers that had waited overnight like sheep awaiting their turn to be sheared by Rogers. Unfortunately that’s a lot of disappointed Apple faithful as the outlet only had 100 iPhones to peddle.
Said Smithereens on The Day »»»
By the looks of things, my assertion one week ago that Rogers stock of phones had been depleted was correct, having been confirmed multiple times today by reps who admitted they had originally been expecting many times more units than they received for today’s launch.
Most locations said they were expecting 100 or more iPhones at first, but they received on average (of those who would tell me how many they had) just 6-15.
Secondly, my suggestion yesterday that Rogers was likely diverting the bulk of its iPhones in each city to the special corporate “launch party” locations also seems to have proven true, as many stores today were actively pointing customers in the direction of these central corporate stores saying “They have 10 times as many as we do.”
And I can understand why they would want to send customers away: Many stores couldn’t sell their iPhones today if they wanted to, since the Rogers account database (SalesCentral) was down for most of the day, crushed under the weight of so many simultaneous activations. (Something Rogers isn’t used to, perhaps?)
Every single store I visited today had the same story: They were able to activate a few lucky customers who were at the front of the lines this morning, but soon after, the database started crashing erratically. Every rep I spoke to had a tale or two about customers who showed up at 9:30 or 10am and didn’t leave with their iPhone until noon or later.
In essence, to describe this launch as anything but chaotic would be quite a stretch.
Stay tuned.
Jon Newton - p2pnet
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July 17th, 2008 at 6:00 am
3…..2…..1…..
BAAAAA…..
July 17th, 2008 at 6:28 am
*lights up some bills and smokes ‘em like money* No phone for me.
Also i agree .. BAAAAAA
July 17th, 2008 at 6:30 am
.. bah .. make that “smokes ‘em like a cigar.”
I guess no more smoking money, gets you high and stupid quickly
July 17th, 2008 at 8:24 am
No phone for me either. Silly people, complained and complained about Rogers rate plans for the iPhone, then after Rogers announced a temporary rate “deal” (and I use the term loosely) until the end of August, only for rates to go back to the original plans.. Complete and and udder foolishness.
Why not stick it to Rogers like they all claimed they would and get the Samsung Instinct from Bell next month? (At least it will come with unlimited data.
)
Baa baa Rogers, have you any iPhones? Of course not, cuz you made Apple angry, so now all your sheep must wait before they can hand over 1000’s of dollars for, of all things, a telephone.
July 17th, 2008 at 8:33 am
It is a status symbol agreed, but sheep, I’m not too sure. You’re a sheep because you want something that lives up to what it is. The product created by appeal is great. Multifunction for business and pleasure. You can ask anyone that has one and they will claim all of it qualities. SERVICE is the key to this, and the carrier in Canada (Rogers) is exploiting apple. They have made a great product without the service support, and they are getting the bad rap. Rogers service even on entail review has no sense. The lack of data rate, talk time and charging of text is outrageous. How are to have a product of the future with service of the past. I’m not an apple fanatic nor do I have the Iphone, specifically because of Rogers, and the poor practices they have. You are the sheep if you are a Rogers customer in general. If you take any offence to that, check out your latest Rogers bill, I’m sure it is well above the price you thought you were going to pay…..BRING DOWN ROGERS AND WE ALL WILL WIN!
July 17th, 2008 at 9:59 am
A friend of mine bought the iphone from Rogers for $249
He didn’t have to sign up for 3yrs or buy a data plan. he simply transferred his current voice plan and sim card to the phone and bingo.
Rogers knows most people won’t question the whole yr contract thing so they push it.
My buddy asked the Rogers retail clerk to pass him the phone, he called Rogers customer service and they confirmed he didn’t need the 3yr contract and then passed the message along to the clerk.
July 17th, 2008 at 10:11 am
These mdedia articles are a little misleading, because:
Rogers says it is now possible to get an iPhone NO-CONTRACT on Rogers.
1. Buy iPhone at FULL price ($599)
2. Get the 250 minute plan for $25 per month no-contract
3. Get the 300 megabyte for $30 per month no-contract
4. You got a NO-CONTRACT iPhone.
5. Cancel anytime!
6. Even use a Pay-As-You-Go Rogers card in iPhone
Yes, a little less minutes and a little less data.
Also, Rogers has the promotional $30 for 6 gigabytes that only has a $100 early-cancellation fee. It’s possible to add this to a no-contract voice plan. Call 611 from the Rogers cellphone or call 1-866-931-DATA and ask for the DATA department (not the SALES or BILLING department), and get the data plan added separately.
The $30 for 6 gigabytes also work on other phones, such as TREO, TyTN, and there’s even a BlackBerry version of this plan too! (I got it on my unlocked foreign BlackBerry Curve, on a no-contract voice plan). The same SIM card from my BlackBerry also works when plugged into an iPhone (either an unlocked original, or one of the Rogers iPhone 3G’s)
July 17th, 2008 at 10:20 am
You don’t need a 3 yr plan because as soon as you change (anything) on your existing plan, they renew the exisiting plan. Have your buddy check the expiration date on his old plan with the new iphone… They also add the iphone data plan to your old plan. Good luck.
July 17th, 2008 at 11:11 am
No amount of cover up and gloss over platitudes about the falsely perceived rush on iPhones, will change the real perception, that Rogers is ripping off Canadians in an overt attempt for greedy profit gains, to bolster their fabricated profit margins. This corporation, has destroyed all good will, and frittered away close to $187,000,000.00 (based on the petitioners of ruinediphone.com, shareholders should be outraged and furious at Rogers anti consumer policies, which are costing them to suffer financially, as Canadian consumers suffer technically. Rogers doesn’t deserve their license to kill the iPhone, and greedily pick the pockets of communicating Canadians.
July 17th, 2008 at 11:13 am
Of course they extended him, but all he has is a voice plan. He said he had no use for the data plan. He figured, he’s already with Rogers, doesn’t plan to cancel so a 3yr extension is nothing. Plus, if he wanted to transfer data, he can connect with wi-fi..PLUS, he’s got an 8GB Ipod with a build in phone, for $30 less than the Ipod touch.
Rogers reps are also misleading customers when it comes to wi-fi vs hotspots etc…
July 17th, 2008 at 11:24 am
Actually you are wrong. If you change something on your existing plan, it does not automatically renew the plan. That would be ludicrous. Say you wanted to add voicemail or remove caller ID, that would mean extending your plan to a full 3 years? Doesn’t make sense.
July 17th, 2008 at 11:37 am
I have no idea what the confusion is within Rogers, some departments give misleading information, but if you connect to the DATA department, you can get the data-plan added on without renewing the voice-plain. Basically you’d only need a 3-year contract only on the data portion of the plan, and the early cancellation fee on that would be only $100 if you later remove the data plan. (Or when leaving Rogers, assuming you’re on a no-contract voice plan)
July 17th, 2008 at 11:41 am
I`m all Rogers and nothing works quite right, I offered my expertise, gratis, but was rebuffed
July 17th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
Find something else to complain about because this is not accomplishing anything. I’m tired about people complaining about a silly phone. Smithereens and all these other blogs are a waste of energy. IT’S A PHONE!
July 17th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
You do know all cell phone companies in canada suck, there more expensive and offer less services then cell phone companies in the U.S and E.U
service access fee lol it was required in teh 80’s when cell phones came out but once the companies were no longer charged the fee they continued to charge the customers. Sadly rogers and Fido are the best cell companies in canada in terms of networks etc. Bell just sucks and is costly for a highly outdated network.
Either way if you want an iphone just refer to the small text on the fido site(fido is a subsidiary of rogers) saying you don’t need to get one of the iphone plans. And if your a current Rogers/Fido customer the phone will cost $249 if you want to renew your contract.
July 17th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Mark Rejhon: So, from personal experience, how do you find Rogers treats their employees?
July 17th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
I don’t think it’s a status symbol. It’s a toy that entices you to play with it. Does my 2 year old think she has a higher status because she’s playing with her stacking blocks for a half an hour? No. She is mesmerized by the well selected colours and pictures. That’s what draws me to it. The iPhone, not the blocks.
All in all, it’s a toy that’s in a class that’s always been expensive. That’s why I’ve never owned a Blackberry and it’s mostly business clients. Now they’ve made a device, in that category, that is wanted by a wider range of people. People who don’t like the expensive category. If Lexus managed to spin one of their cars in such a way that a broader range of people want it, those people would complain that Lexus is ripping off Canadians with high priced cars. They’ve always been high priced. People who aren’t used to buying Lexus’ now want one. People who aren’t used to Smartphones and their data plans now want an iPhone.
Oddly enough, I think owning a Lexus is a status symbol. I did go and contradict myself. Please disregard that fact.
July 17th, 2008 at 1:43 pm
I’m never going to pay that much for a freaking cell phone. I don’t care how many cool and exciting features it may have, it’s not worth the money to pay for a device whose “primary” purpose is to make phone calls. If I want video, music, games, etc I’ll use my awesome light-weight Fujitsu Lifebook with it’s Core2Duo @ 1.8GHz and 2GB of RAM. And I’ll make calls from my home as usual for my MUCH MUCH lower rate from Telus. I mean, it’s a no brainer.
These are the same people complaining about the price of gasoline these days, but would they ever think to complain about the price of their cellphone plan? No way! It’s amazing how incredibly dim-witted people are. They’ll pay thousands to be hip (like anyone else cares, lol), but they’ll complain about something a lot more useful like the price of gas being too high.
It just astounds me.. Every single Canadian that buys this piece of junk makes the rest of us look bad.
July 17th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
I wonder how much of these plans will survive the 3 years
July 17th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
Brass2TheMax is missing the point. Try stick your Fujitsu Lifebook and home phone in your pocket (attached to a land line of course), along with a GPS and iPod. See how far you get. Also, let me know where you’d get those pants, with the magical pockets that can fit all that.
Also, people do complain about gas. And about cell phone plans. And non-smoking by-laws, and just about anything else they can complain about. Not sure where you’re coming from there big chucker?
July 17th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Its such a waste of money. Is it a status symbol? No. Symbol of consumerism? Yes. Come on… do we really need the internet, movies, music, and gps in our pocket? No! I don’t know about you but I can follow a map just fine. My stereo in my car is great and I can buy much cheaper portable device like an ipod if need be. I’d rather watch a movie on a tv and not a 4 inch screen. And if you need internet 24.7 you are an addict . Get out more and enjoy life outside of technology. It’s not a necessity, its a toy. If you dont want to pay for your toys then stop complaining.
July 17th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Here in the US, the cell phone carriers seem about as bad. Try finding a data plan service without a lengthy contract containing a stinging penalty fee if you ever cancel.
“But there’s competition”, they say. But it seems all the major companies operate nearly exactly the same way, leaving the customer with virtually no choice.
In an ideal world, the customer should be able to permanently own his own phone number and cell phone, and to use them on any and every cell phone service provider.
July 17th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
Awww, too bad, I drove down to Seattle a few months back, bought an iphone, at an Apple store, walked across to the Starbucks, hooked it up to my laptop and unlocked it in two minutes, inserted my sim card and away I went, free and un fleeced by Rogers.
July 17th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Why the f*ck would you buy a phone at the plan price? If very few had bough it, Rogers might, just maybe, have lowered their prices after figuring out that their customers enjoy getting gouged for money, Unfortunatly, the iSlaves were out in full force. Nice goin iSlaves, now Rogers will never learn! Grrr….
July 17th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
I work as a dealer for Rogers and I just cannot begin to describe the thievery when it comes to contracts and other such commitments from customers. The $6.95 system access fee is a joke. It is explained to us (the dealers) as a fee to maintain the system. Then why not use a percentage of the money received from a person’s monthly bill rather than charge an exorbitant 7 bucks on top? The one thing not even mentioned here is that any one who gets an iphone (or any phone for that matter) on a new activation or a hardware upgrade pays an extra $35 as an activation fee (the explanation here is that it is a government fee or something to that effect). So for a new activation the customer is actually paying phone price + $35 no matter what. Finally, features like Caller ID are extra for $7, which have actually gone up from $5 and later $6 a month extra.
All in all, one should hope the Government follows through with easing the looting for anything Rogers provides (Bell is even worse with a $9 system access fee) and bringing in foreign competition ASAP!
July 17th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
I guess some people have more money than brains.
July 17th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
I don’t see the iphone as the issue, its Rogers! well, cellphone service in Canada in general. I’m an unfortunate Rogers victim at the moment and I wish I could say I can’t wait for my contract to end so I can switch but all the companies offer me the same services for approximately the same outrageous price. Caller-ID, system access fee… who do they think they’re kidding? oh yeah, us.
July 17th, 2008 at 8:04 pm
Here’s the deal with getting the voice plan only (with or without a contract). If you opt out of the data plan you must remember that this phone always wants to be connected. If you shut off the 3G it will automatically switch to EDGE. It can not disconnected. If by accident you hit a key to start the browser (check the weather or e-mail) your non DATA charges go into effect. Now, your maybe looking at a big bill at the end of the month.
July 17th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
Why does Rogers (and Bell, and telus) rip off customers? Because they can. We put up with the system access fee, the $7 a month for caller id, the activation charge, pay as you go plans that expire every 60 days, the roaming charges… They say “Canada is a large country, and we have to cover a large area”, yet leave any major city and you get no coverage.
It is no wonder that while the rest of the world enjoys 10Mbit internet, TV and video-chat on their cell phones, we in Canada are stuck with 10 year old service and cell phones that the rest of the world traded in years earlier. We pretty much invented telecommunications, and yet here we are today. If there was ever proof that lack of competition stifles innovation, this is it.
July 17th, 2008 at 10:17 pm
I’d Like to personally say that I have been ray-p’d by Rogers Communications. I thought about going to the police to report it but I was too scared. It was a misleading experience at first, turning into a painfull nightmare as Rogers sucked me dry, demanded an outrageous amount of money from me on a monthly basis. To top it all off I had to pay them around $125 a month just to keep them from giving me some dirty penalty. To top it all off they demanded a 3 Year commitment from me as well.
Safe shopping folks. Buyers Beware of the Apple Iphone from Rogers or anywhere else that plans on raping you to purchase such an expensive phone. Get the Fvck outdoors people and unplug yourselves from the matrix. Buy a piece of shit pay as you go phone, get the cheap unlimited plan and you won’t have to argue with whiney little b*tchez on this fantastic website.
P.S. Fvck U Rogers. From most if not all of us. Stop Raping the Innocent!
July 17th, 2008 at 11:50 pm
Rogers doesn’t charge me a system access fee. I told them that term is for a government tax that is no longer collected, so they can’t collect it. They said “ok”. You don’t have to pay it, it is being challenged in court as a misrepresented charge.