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A Canadian man has been shocked to receive a mobile phone bill for nearly $85,000 (£41,000).
Piotr Staniaszek thought he could use his new phone as a modem for his computer under his $10 unlimited mobile browser plan from Bell Mobility.
Ouch!
[news.bbc.co.uk...]
He has a point about them cutting him off, he went $100 over and they cut his service he goes $65,000 over and they let him rack up another $20,000. And he called them to find out not vise versa.
This is some bab publicity for Bell, and they deserve it. They are trying to get $250 out of my better half for 2 phone calls she never made, that lasted 2 hours each when were in California last month. I was with her at the time, its completely bogus.
To me, an "unlimited mobile browser" plan does not sound like free reign to use the phone as a modem.
I disagree... look at the listing page for this service.
Service detials [bell.ca]
It clearly indicates that there are no limits for mobile browsing... it does not indicate that the mobile browsing has to be done on the phone's browser. It states in every column that if you have the plan downloads are unlimited. No Astrix*
A direct quote about the service
Unlimited Mobile BrowserTM service lets you surf the wireless Web all you want. Plus, you won't pay data transport fees to download games, ringtones, screensavers, Full Track Music and TV, or to send instant messages, pictures and videos.
[edited by: engine at 10:15 pm (utc) on Dec. 13, 2007]
[edit reason] sidescroll [/edit]
I can't find any writing that says, "Hook your phone up to a computer and get unlimited free downloading."
And according to the BBC story, "He downloaded high-definition movies and other large files..." which are not listed on that chart. Even watching TV is only unlimited "with a Fun 20 bundle."
nothing substantially different between using it as a modem and using it directly
[edited by: LifeinAsia at 10:07 pm (utc) on Dec. 13, 2007]
Somewhere on that page it should say that unlimited means up to X amount per month.
Unlimited has one meaning, no limit.
Really though they should have a cap on individuals phones they cannot expect someone to incur those charges.
There is such thing as "value for dollar" which means you have to look at what an "average" cost would be to receive the services he got... and even with a very expensive ISP what he did would never result in more then $3000 a month for a service charge and even that would be considered a very high and even unreasonable price. You aren't allowed to bilk people like that.
No one would ever pay that much for an internet connection and no-one should be held to pay that... it isn't fair value for dollar.... which makes it a scam.
It reminds me of this Chinese buffet place at a local mall food court. They have a sign that reads
"4 items...$4.95
5 items...$5.95
unlimited items $7.95"
but if you get more then 3 meat items it is extra for every meat item... so then why does it say unlimited? I argued with a guy there for 15 minutes about what the word unlimited meant. They have about 40 items, 20 of which are meat items.. it says unlimited items for $7.95 but if you get more then 3 meat items it costs more... That just doesn't jive to me and neither does this.
He got to browse the internet with his computer using a service they provided. They gave him a way to connect his phone to his computer and browse the Internet... Regardless of how or why he can't be expected to pay that much for a service that doesn't cost that much to provide.
Value for dollar... is he getting it? No...
If that price includes a car to plug his phone and laptop into then maybe I can see the bill being that much, but I didn't hear anything about a car.
Remember 1-900 numbers? They tried the same crap where they would rape you with an overcharge that couldn't be justified for the services rendered... charge-backs became so common that many states created legislation restricting what they could charge.
This is no different.
[edited by: Demaestro at 10:54 pm (utc) on Dec. 13, 2007]
I am talking about what service he received.
They gave him a way to connect his phone to his computer
"Justification" of cost has no bearing in a market economy. There are plenty of other things that are priced way beyond their actual cost. In some cases, people will still buy them. In others, they don't, which often forces the price lower.
Perfect example: gas. I may be paying 50% more for gas than I did 2 years ago, but am I getting 50% more value for it? No. So does that mean I can sue the gas companies because they are charging me way more than the cost of providing that gas? Yeah, right!
Doesn't make it right, just something that's not new. :(
BTW - the TOS say:
Your phone comes equipped with Mobile Browser, ready to use. Unless you subscribe to Unlimited Mobile Browser or a Fun bundle, you'll be charged 5¢ per kilobyte (KB) on a pay-per-use basis when you surf the wireless Internet.Some rate plans include Mobile Browser Lite or Mini Mobile Browser (100KB of browsing each month).
If you plan to download games, music, TV and similar content to your phone, we recommend a subscription to the Unlimited Mobile Browser service or a Fun bundle.
It clearly states mobile browser and not unlimited internet access / unlimited tethering access. Just because they don't say it doesn't mean you can do it.
