Does anyone us SBC (southwesternbell) as their

[Blue_Roses]

phone service and if so, how do you like them?

[wakfs]

1. Here in Connecticut

SBC owns SNET (Southern New England Telephone) our formerly independent phone company.

Quite frankly, I haven't noticed any difference. Of course, I use my cell phone for long distance and land line for local calls only.

[thom1102]

2. I do...

I also work for them. I find that with my DSL service, with all distance services, and the "works" package, my phone bill is usually about $60 per month. I make long distance phone calls on my cellphone which is seperate, and the calls are free, so there really aren't any long distance calls on that bill.

Honestly, I found, for regular phone service, they are excellent. DSL is a fantastic product, and I have no problems plugging it whenever I can. However, there are some glitches in the process of ordering that have caused difficulty in people getting, or changing their service. Some of these are regulatory in nature and others are just working the bugs out of the order flow process. But once you have it, you never want to go back. Let me know if you have any other specific questions, I would be glad to help out.

[Beaker]

10. same here.

I don't work for them, but do have phone and DSL through them. No problems whatsoever.
We used to have a cable modem, but DSL has been WAAAAAY better than the cable...especially after Comcast took it over(the cable).

[Zero Gravitas]

3. SBC is eeeeeeeeeeeevil

I HATE THEM.

[Blue_Roses]

4. how so

seriously...I heard alot of bad things as well.

[Zero Gravitas]

5. let me count he ways...

Lousy service, lousy customer service, frequent telemarketing calls, refusal to co-operate with 3rd party DSL provider (I eventually dropped DSL, I would NEVER buy DSL from SWB, and got a cable modem).

It took a week to turn on phone service when i moved and I couldn't even keep my old number. Oh and it cost $60. WTF?

EVERYTHING costs extra.. "oh you want your phone to RING when someone calls? that'll be $5.95 a month extra"... an exageration but not by much. If your phone service goes out, can you talk to a live human being? no of course not. But when the phone is working they'll call you once a week trying to sell you caller ID etc. I had to tell them 4 or 5 times to stop calling me before the telemarketing would stop.

When you can talk to customer service their main two functions seem to be 1) sell you more services, 2) blame some-one else for whatever the problem is.

SBC Sucks. They're the epitomy of money grubbing evil corporate pigs.

[thom1102]

6. Ouch!

Sorry that you have had such a bad deal with us. I haven't had nearly the trouble you have.

Here in, CT we've had a statewide "do not call" list for the past 3 years, so we haven't had to deal with the telemarketing problem. Our Customer Service technicians are pressured to promote what are called "vertical services" to customers who call in, and, especially here in CT with the DNC list, it has been really good at informing customers of specials, and offers that could be in the customers best interest. They are also shown how to analyse calling habits to recommend plans that can save the customer money.

That $60 per month that I cited includes my ISP costs as well as my phone service. That ISP cost is about $25, which leaves $35 for my regular phone bill, and that includes the works package, and caller ID. Just basic phone service here in CT is about $15.

While I won't say that SBC has been a paragon of social responsibility since it took over SNET, it has invested millions of dollars into upgrading the telephone plant here in CT and expanded the workforce as well.

On edit: Additionally, when SBC purchased SNET, SNET had the poorest paid employees in the industry. We went on strike to demand better wages and benefits. SNET took a hard line with it's union, and refused to budge on its final offer, and the strike threatened to continue much longer than the month it had already gone on. SBC stepped in (this was right before the merger was completed) and pressured SNET to settle the strike. In that single contract period, we went from being the lowest paid in the industry, paying 20-25% of our medical insurance premiums, to the highest paid and not paying anything toward our medical benefits. "So what? They were trying to win the battle for public opinion right before they took over a new company" except that 3 years later, when the contract was due to expire, the company approached the union, and worked to settle the contract early. Included in that contract were generous wage increases, additional personal days, and continued no cost sharing of medical benefits. This occuring at the same time that Verizon workers were on the picket line. They received an 86 on the HRC employer index rating compnies policies for GLBT issue. So at a time when more and more companies are adopting union busting tactics in a race to the bottom for worker salaries and benefits, SBC has established a track record for working with their unions to build aconstructive relationship.

Additionally, in the last 6 years we have won 4 out of 6 JD Power Awards for excellence in Local Telephone Service, and 3 out of 6 for Long Distance service.

[Zero Gravitas]

7. interesting

I've been a long time customer of South Western Bell, they are/were the local phone company. To be honest they are not as bad now (calling themselves SBC) as when they were SWB (although they are still pretty lousy) but SWB was so bad it would take maybe 10 years of excellent, free, personalised service to overcome the bad taste of SWB.

[thom1102]

8. I do have some friends who feel the same way...

I just thought you might like to hear some not so bad stuff about them.

[Beaker]

11. We switched to SBC several months ago-

and have been COMPLETELY satisfied. the customer service is very good, and the DSL service is a lot better, and a lot cheaper than the cable company ISP we were using before.
I'd reccomend them to anyone.

[hunter]

12. Wow, "Better than Comcast!"

As if that means anything. It's like saying "tastes better than dirt!"

In a perfect world things could be so much better. In today's world, if a big corporation delivers mediocre services, and they don't actually steal from you, we heap praise upon them.

Listen, telephone service today is so inexpensive that big corporations find it profitable to hire telemarketers in India to harass us at dinnertime. Yet I'm supposed to think my very limited long distance telephone service is some sort of good deal.

The telecommunication system in the United States needs to be "re-regulated" in such a way that all the phone companies, and satellite dish companies, and cable televison companies, and cell phone companies, as we now know them, become EXTINCT. Adapt or die. I thought that was the way business was supposed to work in the United States, but I guess I was misinformed.

[Beaker]

14. We've had absolutely no problem with SBC.

Good service at good rates.

what more do you want?

[hunter]

9. They suck...

Pac Bell was mostly indifferent in the actual "Dilbert" or "benign tumor" sort of way. When SBC bought Pac Bell it became Dogbert and Catbert, 24-7. Formerly cheerful Pac Bell employees started showing up in the foyer moaning and dragging chains.

And geez, now SBC wants to change the name of Pac Bell Park in San Francisco... Is that evil, or what?

[thom1102]

13. Not want's to, is changing...

We just got the email the other day telling us about it. Interesting bit of Dilbert trivia (which you may already know) Dilbert creator Scott Adams was a middle manager from PacBell when he first started drawing Dilbert. And many of his strips come from actual experiences he had at PacBell. We had quite the opposite experience out here, when the merger first happened, although there has been a gradual increase in the moan/chain level here as well since then.

[hunter]

15. The moan/chain level is rising everywhere...

I don't think it's specific to SBC. I'm actually sort of neutral towards them, despite my ranting.

But I think the current administration expects us to be thankful we are not illegal aliens sweeping the floors at our local Wal-Marts.

We could be deported, you know...

[Blue-Jay]

16. No problems here.

Phone service and DSL work great. I had a few problems with the DSL connection about a year ago, and they sent out a technician the next morning. I have "linebacker", so there was no charge. Plus, I just signed on for another year of DSL at a reduction of my current rate. (26.99 instead of 29.99) Also, the techie people at the DSL help desk weren't answering from India.