Tech Broiler

Jason Perlow and Scott Raymond

Rant: I switched to T-Mobile to get AWAY from AT&T!

By | March 20, 2011, 12:22pm PDT

Summary: AT&T acquires T-Mobile. AT&T might be happy, but not everyone else is.

Image originally from Gizmodo

Image originally from Gizmodo

Dear T-Mobile: Thanks for nothing.

If you haven’t heard yet, AT&T has acquired T-Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom for $39 billion in cash and stock. It’s been presumed that AT&T had done this to buy a 4G network rather than spend more effort building out its own.

There’s just one problem for me. I left AT&T last year because I was fed up with the terrible AT&T service, along with poor customer support. When I moved to California in 1999, I switched from my analog AT&T service to AT&T’s GSM service. In 2004, Cingular acquired AT&T Wireless. I was quite happy with it, although some other people had issues with the service. Things were fine until the SBC/AT&T merger. The service immediately began to suffer in terms of quality.

After being overcharged for handsets, call waiting, text messaging, and various other forms of being nickel-and-dimed to death, I chose to switch to T-Mobile. Their coverage wasn’t as good, but the phone service quality was excellent and the customer support was excellent. They always went the extra mile for me.

With AT&T, I can expect the T-Mobile service to degrade, customer support to be switched over to one that doesn’t care, and billing options being changed and costs increased with little warning once the contract ends.

Considering that I was willing to eat an early termination charge from AT&T to switch my cell number over to T-Mobile, this acquisition should be considered a violation of my user contract with T-Mobile. I deserve the option to be let out of my contract with T-Mobile.

Hello, Verizon? Can you hear me now?

Update:

T-Mobile posted a Q&A about the merger on their website. Basically it boils down to them claiming that T-Mobile will remain an independent company. If that were so, then there would be no need for a merger.

Cingular acquired AT&T Wireless in 2004. They originally shared the GSM 1900 network with T-Mobile–an arrangement which was dissolved after the AT&T acquisition. With the merger of SBC and AT&T, the wireless company was transitioned to AT&T Mobility.

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Topics

Scott Raymond has been a technologist and system administrator for over 25 years.

Disclosure

Scott Raymond

I am the IT Manager for a high end audio and network systems integrator in northern Califronia. My wife works at Adobe Systems, Inc. Whenever I write an article that might involve Adobe or its products, I add a disclaimer at the top of the article to make sure she is not involved in any way. We have a small bit of stock with AT&T and no other major investments that would cause conflict.

Biography

Scott Raymond

Scott Raymond has been a technologist and system administrator for over 25 years. Starting as a hobbyist in his teens, Scott quickly learned that he could translate his passion and knowledge into a full-time career. He currently works as the IT Manager for a high end audio and network systems integrator in northern California. He has written technology articles for various publications in the past and began contributing to ZDnet as a guest blogger on Jason Perlow's Tech Broiler. Scott and Jason met in New York in the 1990s where they co-managed the New York City Palm Pilot Users' Group.

In his spare time, Scott is a trained chef and avid bicycling enthusiast, as well as a voracious reader of historical, science and horror fiction. He is a huge fan of pop culture, with a wide range of interest in TV shows, movies and games.

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RE: Rant: I switched to T-Mobile to get AWAY from AT&T!
lucky2288 24th Sep
@j-mccurdy@... A lot of people consider somebody creating a forensic psychology salary range as being involved with the police since felony profilers, however case the television sophisticated style component. In fact you might find oneself employed in family courtroom checking into claims of youngster abuse, discovering the danger factors inside people???s houses and offering psychiatric therapy solutions in order to people in lengthy families.

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Not Quite
davezatz 20th Mar 2011
"AT&T has acquired T-Mobile USA"

Uh, actually they haven't. They announced their intention to do so. We'll see how it all shakes out. (I left AT&T for Verizon.)
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Contributr
@davezatz Except for the regulatory approval, this is already a done deal. Read the Business Wire link again.
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It's a done deal only after regulatory approval. Which may or may not occur. And surely won't be measured in days or weeks. You've got plenty of time to work on your exit strategy, should you need one.
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@Scott Raymond
"Conditions

The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals, a reverse breakup fee in certain circumstances, and other customary regulatory and other closing conditions. The transaction is expected to close in approximately 12 months. "

Hmmm. Doesn't look done yet and if it closes in 12 months and if it then takes 6-12 months to integrate the businesses you'll have plenty of time to fulfill your contract and switch without dishing out any more cash.

I don't think the sky is falling yet, chicken little. However, I do agree with your not wanting any part of AT&T. I have been free of them since 2001.
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NEVER be an ATT Customer!
Uralbas 20th Mar 2011
I refuse to be an ATT customer. Its the WORST COMPANY from a customer stand point of view.

Deuttsche Telelom sold us out! We should all leave TMobile asap. Unless you want to be charged extra for an inferior service.

ATT provides the following benefits to its customers:

-- A service so poor, that is not even allowed in third world countries
-- You will pay dearly
-- You wont be able to user your hotspot unless you pay up what ATT wants.
-- Your Android cap will be limited to make iPhone look good so your speed will drop from 5K to 0.5K Mbps
-- You stand a good chance of been overcharged without noticed for services you dont comsume.
-- You will have to review your bill every month to see if its accurate.

Advice to ALL TMobile customers, LEAVE while you can!
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RE: Rant: I switched to T-Mobile to get AWAY from AT&T!
j-mccurdy@... Updated - 21st Mar 2011
@Scott Raymond I also left ATT for T Mobile. ATT was always shady with extremely horrible customer service, while T Mobile always treated us well and offered good pricing. Well those days are over. So enjoy your good rates and customer service now, because we are about to get raped by ATT. The bunch of crooks.
@davezatz
I was in BellSouth when acquired by AT&T and I doubt that this acquisition will be different. Within weeks, special team managers from both companies will begin working together on every aspect of the purchase: finance, inventory, vendors, contracts, operations, data centers, IT, infrastructure, etc. Everything will be ready once approval from Feds is received and T-Mobile customers can expect to receive a welcome message on day 1. This is how it is done. Changes will come on day 2... lots and lots and lots of changes. As I was told by an AT&T manager when I was working with BellSouth, "We bought you..." So clearly, T-Mobile being independent and working outside of AT&T is a fairy tale.
Of course, this is just my opinion.
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RE: Rant: I switched to T-Mobile to get AWAY from AT&T!
No Thanks, Just Lurking 22nd Mar 2011
@davezatz: I think it is just a matter of "how much the government can get" out of the deal at this point. They won't stop it because the government just looks to feed the greed... I will leave T-Mobile as soon as possible. Unfortunately I just signed a 2 year so I am stuck!
@davezatz
Actually, if you have a national plan with no roaming charges on a GSM phone you are ALREADY and AT&T and T-mobile customer without knowing it.
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@kd5auq But it wasn't cheap enough for companies like StarTek to build call centers in the boonies and pay Americans and Canadians next-to-nothing, they had to "grow offshore" while "decreasing their footprint in the US and Canada." Translation: Lay off hundreds of North American workers (330 in Alexandria alone last month) and outsource the jobs even further to countries like Costa Rica and the Philippines. dentist san jose
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RE: Rant:
lucky2288 Updated - 5th Dec
@kd5auq
A lot of people consider somebody creating a forensic psychologist salary range as being involved with the police since felony profilers, however case the television sophisticated style component. In fact you might find oneself employed in family courtroom checking into claims of youngster abuse, discovering the danger factors inside people???s houses and offering psychiatric therapy solutions in order to people in lengthy families.

Very few folks can easily truly pay the real funds essential to supply nice hair and also face beauty salon using the correct equipment. The salon products package deal could be the superb remedy as opposed to asking for funds out of your bank or even acquiring Oriental counterfeits. To save lots of dollars when choosing wholesale salon equipment, you must take into consideration obtaining a hair salon equipment package.
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@Scott Raymond I have been reading with bemused interest the comments of T-Mobile customers about how they have remained loyal for many years because of the great customer service. The truth is, whether T-Mobile and AT&T merge or not, the quality of service which T-Mobile customers are experiencing has already nosedived because of both carriers' outsourcing practices. If you want to know what's really going on with the lousy call center experiences common to customers of both AT&T and T-Mobile, spend a few minutes looking into an outsourcing company called StarTek Inc. based in Denver. You may have thought you were getting great service from real T-Mobile employees, but instead you were most likely talking to underpaid/undercompensated StarTek call center employees in middle-of-nowhere locations such as Alexandria, Louisiana (roughly 100 miles from the nearest T-Mobile tower or dealer, so much for the employees having any actual hands-on experience with the device you were calling about). But it wasn't cheap enough for companies like StarTek to build call centers in the boonies and pay Americans and Canadians next-to-nothing, they had to "grow offshore" while "decreasing their footprint in the US and Canada." Translation: Lay off hundreds of North American workers (330 in Alexandria alone last month) and outsource the jobs even further to countries like Costa Rica and the Philippines. T-Mobile customers noticed the difference immediately, especially those long-suffering people stuck with FlexPay accounts, and now AT&T customers are hearing those undeniably robotic Filipino accents as well. T-Mobile customers who became angry enough to cancel their accounts got transferred to the "Customer Loyalty" retention department, which suddenly became a "blended queue" with Spanish customer care, so these already-agitated customers were often greeted in Spanish after waiting on an extended hold. So, to answer your rant, no matter where you run, you're going to be stuck with the same lousy "offshore" service anyway.
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RE: Rant: I switched to T-Mobile to get AWAY from AT&T!
aphilipoff Updated - 20th Mar 2011
This deal still has to pass through regulatory scrutiny but given recent events, I doubt that ATT will have too many problems pushing this deal past US regulators. I also escaped to T-Mobile from ATT because of horrific billing practices, terrible customer service and lackluster network connectivity that I experienced with ATT. I've been very happy with T-Mobile, their phones and customer service are top-notch but their network can be weak in some places. I escaped from ATT by using cellswapper.com instead of paying an early termination fee. I was a Pacific Bell Wireless/Cingular/ATT customer for almost 10 years, looks like all good things do come to an end.
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Contributr
@aphilipoff This is why I'm saying it's a done deal. When was the last time you saw a big merger like this get turned down? Keep in mind that these are two US-based companies, so the EU won't be getting involved.

I have a trip to Europe coming up in June. After that, I'm giving serious consideration to moving my mobile service to Verizon. There should be a new round of world-capable phones by then.
@Scott Raymond
I suggest you to consider Sprint instead of Verizon. Right now they are the best with cheaper plans. IMO both Big Red and Blue eats lot of money for little service. Of course, if the place where you are doesn't get good sprint then you have no choice though.
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Contributr
@Rama.NET Normally I would, but Sprint has no global-capable phones in its current lineup. The next batch of phones to Verizon will likely have both 4G and world-roaming.
@Scott Raymond
I agree with you on Global roaming. I would love if Sprint can get its hands on LTE. If they do that my business with AT&T will be permanently moved to Sprint.
@Scott Raymond: ... the very same as it is now. Existing working system is not bought to all of these done investments be thrown away. No one is going to turn your local T-Mobile equipment/service to "worse"; nothing will happen to it.

So while on emotional level your worries are understandable, on level of reason there is nothing to fear about AT&T-T-Mobile merge -- at least for any near future.

You can stay with T-Mobile easily for a quite long time before any changes would become reality. And if these changes will go to worse, then only it will make sense to move.
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They are owned by Deutsche Telekom
John Zern 21st Mar 2011
@Scott Raymond
so the EU may want to jump in on some grounds. Don't know what or how, but they could still mess it up somehow.
@Scott Raymond
I'd also consider Sprint before I'd give Verizon another dime, and I'm currently one of their customers. When my current contract runs out, I will switch to Sprint.

How often do you go to Europe? One or two weeks a year? You can get a temporary pre-paid phone for that.

A service contract will last you a couple of years. What's one or two weeks in Europe? After you get back, you'll begin to hate Verizon for nickle & diming you to death. I'll bet you will wind up having a similar experience to the one you had before.
I went the opposite way ... from T-Mobile to AT&T ... and I'm so much happier. I have better reception than I've ever had (I have the Samsung Focus). I'm glad I made the switch.
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Better reception, meh
Joe Acerbic 20th Mar 2011
@roteague I would take T-Mo's fraud-free billing, friendly and flexible service, free tethering, least expensive prices etc. etc. any day over At&T's slightly wider coverage and constant fighting about overcharging which I have experience of. I pray the government shoots down this atrocity.
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It creates a GSM monopoly. And Monopolies are illegal.
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It creates a GSM monopoly. And Monopolies are illegal.
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Contributr
@Uralbas That is an excellent point, and I hope that it works in the consumers' favor. Unfortunately, years of corporate deregulation have allowed mega-mergers to occur in the recent past. Let's hope this won't be a repeat of the same.
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@Uralbas Sure it creates a monopoly on one specific technology, but it doesn't create a monopoly on wireless service.
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And when Verizon buys Sprint
John Zern 21st Mar 2011
@Uralbas
Then Verizon will have a CDMA monopoly, so it'll even out. wink
@roteague
I am so happy for you; but, know you are in the minority. Many of us left AT&T for a variety of reasons but not better reception... yes, AT&T has a bigger footprint... all the better to step all over you and mush you like the bug they believe you to be. (My Opinion.)
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Verizon Here I Come!
tom.harney@... 20th Mar 2011
I refuse to be on a network owned by AT&T.
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Cingular was always part of AT&T.
statuskwo5 20th Mar 2011
AT&T never acquired Cingular. Cingular was a joint venture between AT&T (then SBC) and BellSouth, so when they bought BellSouth, they just renamed Cingular to AT&T Mobility.
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Contributr
RE: Rant: I switched to T-Mobile to get AWAY from AT&T!
Scott Raymond Updated - 20th Mar 2011
@statuskwo5 Thanks for the correction. AT&T Wireless was originally acquired by Cingular. Cingular and T-Mobile originally shared the GSM 1900 network, which was dissolved after the AT&T Wireless merger, and then Cingular later reverted to the AT&T name with the SBC/AT&T merger.
I have both, and originally, I also switched to T-Mobile to get away from Pac Bell, er Cingular, er ATT. However, at the moment, ATT offers better customer service (never thought I'd say that) and better coverage.

I may still move my account to Verizon, but only cuz I already have an ATT line as well as my T-Mobile- so its not a bad insurance policy.
I just wish google will buy Sprint and T-Mobile along with Clearwire. It would be cool.
But this merge... That's shocking news. I still can't believe it.
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to get much better coverage.
I hope the government shuts this down. I was hoping to switch to t-mobile in a couple months to save $40 a month and have more minutes and better phones....it's unlikely that att prices will go down, and they will kill the uncapped data plan from tmobile... guess i wont get to benefit from tmobile now....
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I just hate it when the Big Evil wins.
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Your article has a glarring error...the merger hasn't happen..."it faces a very long and up hill fight", according to CNBC...Sprint is so weakened and smaller that in effect it will leave a duopoly in cell service in the USA....it wall also result in many, many layoffs at a time, when the economy could scarcely afford them...this is far from a done deal!
@Scott Raymond:
"Basically it boils down to them claiming that T-Mobile will remain an independent company. If that were so, then there would be no need for a merger."

Did you actually read the Q&A article?
"The agreement is the first step in a process that, including regulatory approvals, is expected to be completed in approximately 12 months. Until then, we remain a separate company and continue to operate independently."
They will remain a separate company UNTIL THE REGULATORY APPROVALS COME THROUGH. This article does not stat that AT&T and T-Mobile would ALWAYS remain separate companies.
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I left AT&T after they bought out CellOne USA. I had a sweet deal with COU: 59.99 for unlimited talk, text & web. Once AT&T bought out COU, I was grandfathered into (they did away with that particular price point/plan) and was forced to use the same phone for 2-3 years. (a phone upgrade wasn't available to me unless I started a new contract).

Currently I'm on T-mobile, because they were the only company that gave me a contract/phone without retardedly high fees (security/deposit fee for less than stellar credit, etc)

I am NOT happy about this.
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Why don't all you you stop whining here and write, call, fax, email the FCC!!!! Start a campaign amongst all your T-Mobile friends to do the same.
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@nevertells@...
I think the FCC will base opinion on the LTE aspect and not the GSM competition as one writer previously suggested. Rather than complaining to the FCC, the DOJ is better equipped to handle the non-technical issues and concerns. Typically, an open opportunity will be available in both departments for comments from the public.
@nevertells@...
I think the FTC would be more appropriate as they would have the sayso about the approval of the merger, not the FCC
no monopoly yet because GSM also avaliable from other companys.
@Tim Pa

Citation please? In America, there are four wireless networks: Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile. Anybody else is using one of those four networks. The fact that there's a different name on the bill doesn't mean that they magically have other towers.

Joey
@Tim Pa
Yes, other GSM carriers in U.S.A. but AT&T and T-Mobile represent the two largest with national footprints.
Anyone interested in mobile carriers and their technology can visit Wikipedia wiki/List_of_United_States_wireless_communications_service_providers
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@Uralbas - You're an idiot...

-- A service so poor, that is not even allowed in third world countries.
* LMAO, that's rediculous. AT&T has more global presence then any other cellular company WORLD WIDE

-- You will pay dearly
* Verizon costs MORE than AT&T!

-- You wont be able to user your hotspot unless you pay up what ATT wants.
* This is the same as contracts spell out with ALL providers. It's only a matter of time before they all do it.

-- Your Android cap will be limited to make iPhone look good so your speed will drop from 5K to 0.5K Mbps
* LMAO, you find this while you're head was up your azz?

-- You stand a good chance of been overcharged without noticed for services you dont comsume.
* I am constantly having to fix my Verizon bills. This applies to all companies.

-- You will have to review your bill every month to see if its accurate.
* See above
@RidgebackJim

Ignoring all your anger... remember, T-Mobile allows tethering without an extra fee...
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@RidgebackJim "I am constantly having to fix my Verizon bills. This applies to all companies."

Incorrect. It applies to Verizon and AT&T, not T-Mobile.
@RidgebackJim
You, sir, are an idiot.
@j-mccurdy@... A lot of people consider somebody creating a forensic psychology salary range as being involved with the police since felony profilers, however case the television sophisticated style component. In fact you might find oneself employed in family courtroom checking into claims of youngster abuse, discovering the danger factors inside people???s houses and offering psychiatric therapy solutions in order to people in lengthy families.

Very few folks can easily truly pay the real funds essential to supply nice hair and also face beauty wholesale salon equipment. The salon products package deal could be the superb remedy as opposed to asking for funds out of your bank or even acquiring Oriental counterfeits. To save lots of dollars when choosing hair salon equipment, you must take into consideration obtaining a hair salon equipment package.

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