Magic Jack offers unlimited calling for 1 year but after using it for 6 months, my outbound calls were shut off for "excessive use of calls".
I purchased Magic Jack in April for purposes of working from home, (phone sales within the US). Magic Jack advertised unlimited calls anywhere in the US and Canada for $20.00/year plus the cost of the device. I happily paid it without hesitation. My service worked fine after a few minor software errors and glitches. I work 30 hours per week, 5 days a week (Mon-Fri) and make on average 200 dials per day with each call being less than 1 min but at max, 15 minutes.
To anyone who works from home having to do B2B outbound calling, this is nothing out of the norm. I made this amount of calls from April November 22 without any complaints or interruption from Magic Jack. As of Nov. 23, my outbound calls were shut off and I was then instructed to do the following: "due to unusual call volumes on your phone, please call 214-884-5124 to rec'v an important update."
I called the number and got a rude customer service manager on the phone that told me I was abusing my magic jack, that my calls were excessive and the only way I was able to make outbound calls now was to purchase pre-paid minutes but I could still receive incoming calls. I asked him to define excessive and abusive amount of calls, he never did but kept repeating that I breached the TOS.
The next day, I went online to talk to tech support and see if I could speak to someone else that was more informed. This is what I got...
Here is a transcript of both chats I had with customer service:
Chat start time Oct 24 2:16: 42 PM EST
Chat end time Oct 24 3:05: 04 PM EST
Duration (actual chatting time) 00:48: 21
Operator Geraldine
Chat Transcript
info: Please wait for a site operator to respond.
Info: You are now chatting with 'Brent'
Brent: Hello, how may I help you?
Mia: hi Brent
Brent: Hello Mia.
Mia: what is the definition of your unlimited minutes for the use of the magic jack?
Mia: is it truly unlimited or is there a cap?
Brent: Calling is free within USA and Canada using your magicjack Mia.
Brent: You can make unlimited calls for free.
Mia: well if I work from home and make roughly 200 dials per day, will I be penalized?
Brent: You can call back to USA and Canada from any where in the world for free.
Brent: No Mia.
Brent: You can make calls as much as you want.
Mia: yes, but how many calls am I allowed to dial?
Brent: We do not limit the number of calls mia.
Mia: well then why was my Magic Jack turned off from making outgoing calls?
Mia: for that very reason
Brent: What do you mean Mia?
Mia: my magic jack ph number 815-34x-xxxx was disconnected from making outgoing calls
Brent: I see.
Mia: and I was told that I would have to purchase additional min at. 01/min from now on to make outgoing calls
Brent: May I know when did the issue start please?
Mia: 2 days ago I think
Brent: No Mia. You will need to purchase an international prepaid minutes at my. Magicjack.com if you want to make international calls.
Mia: these are all domestic calls
Mia: I don't make international calls at all
Brent: So you don't need to buy minutes for that Mia.
Mia: well my phone will not work at this time
Mia James: so how are you going to fix this?
Brent: I see.
Brent: Let me fix it for you.
Brent: Please unplug your magicJack then plug it back into another usb port after 20 seconds.
Mia: Im able to recieve calls, just not make them
Brent: Yes Mia.
Brent: Please try the steps above and run the upgrade as well.
Brent: Please click the link to download and run the magicJack upgrade (applicable for both XP & Vista):
Brent: http://upgrades. Magicjack.com/upgrade/upgrade. Exe
Mia: oh, I ran the upgrade a few days ago already
Mia: thank you for that info though
Brent: Please run the upgrade this time Mia after you plug in back your magicjack.
Mia: ok, hold on
Mia: thank you
Brent: Sure mia.
Brent: Pleas take your time.
Mia: due to unusual call volume on your phone, please call 214-884-5124 to rec'v an important update.
Mia: this is the message I get when I try to make a call now
Brent: I see.
Brent: OKay
Brent: Thank you for your patience. I will transfer you to a higher level of support. Please hold while I transfer you.
Mia: thank you
info: Please wait while I transfer the chat to the best suited site operator.
Info: You are now chatting with 'Geraldine'
Geraldine: Hi Mia
Mia: hi Geraldine
Mia: will you be able to help me?
Mia: Magic Jack has disconnected my outgoing calls
Geraldine: Mia, may I know when did this start?
Mia: I've paid for a year of service and only recv'd 6 months worth
Mia: this started yesterday
Mia: you mean the disconnection of my outgoing calls?
Mia s: that was yesterday?
Geraldine: Yes
Geraldine: Okay
Mia: yesterday.
Geraldine: Can I have your magicJack phone number?
Mia: 815-349-6081
Geraldine: Thank you
Mia: I was told that my calls were excessive and abusive
Geraldine: Mia, does this happen to the other magicJack that you have?
Mia: and that I had to purcahse minutes now in order to make outgoing
Mia: no, it doesn't because I hadn't used it yet
Mia: as I told Brent, I work from home and I make about 200 calls a day
Geraldine: Okay
Mia: and work 5 days a week, 6 hours a day
Geraldine: Mia, please let me have at least 2 numbers you are not able to call
Mia: so my calls are for business purposes
Mia: im not able to call ANY NUMBER
Mia: I can't make ANY outgoing call
Mia: NONE
Mia: NADA
Mia: ZILCH
Mia s: I can only recieve calls
Geraldine: Please just give me 2 of those numbers that you are not able to call
Mia: on the 349-6081 #
Mia: it doesn't matter what number it is, I can't make the call
Mia: 815-9xxx-xxxx
Mia: thats my home number/landline
Geraldine: Okay.
Mia: and the 214-884-5124 number the recording told me to call
Geraldine: Mia, I will transfer this information to our engineers so they can check of any issues on our servers. My apologies for the inconvenience however please bear with us as we resolve this issue for you. Our engineers are now aware of this issue and we are making this as a priority one.
Mia: ok so tell me
Mia: is your unlimited call plan that I purchased
Mia: truly unlimited
Mia: or is there a cap like I was told yesterday
Geraldine: That is unlimited Mia
Mia: because that's what this all comes down to
Geraldine: There is no limits as to the calls
Mia: well I'm being limited Geraldine
Mia: so how do you explain that?
Geraldine: When did you start to have this issue Mia?
Mia: yesterday
Geraldine: I believe it is just a few hours from now, right?
Geraldine: When did you start to use the magicJack?
Geraldine: I believe it's been months right?
Mia: this time, yesterday
Mia: no, I've never had this issue before
Mia: I've never been told before yesterday there was a problem with the volume of calls that I've made
Mia: I've had my magic jack for 6 months now
Mia: and up until yesterday, everything was fine
Geraldine: Then it's it. You have been able to make calls as long as you want unlimited. You have this problem now and you are accusing us already that we are limiting your calls after a months of using it?
Mia: yes, because you're limiting me from making calls
Mia: you just told me that the plan I purchased was unlimited
Mia: without caps
Mia: and I've only had it 6 months
Mia: not 1 year
Mia: if it was past 12 months, and I hadn't renewed the plan, then you'd have cause to disconnect my service
Mia: but thats not the case here
Mia: so which is it, unlimited or unlimited with a cap?
Geraldine: It is unlimited Mia. That is why I have coordinated this with our engineers so they will know that you have this issue. So you will be able to make calls as long as you want for the next 6 months
Geraldine: My apologies for the inconvenience Mia however please bear with us in resolving this
Geraldine: Is there anything else I may help you with today?
Mia: I just want to know that I won't have this issue anymore
Mia: at least until it's time for me to renew my account
Geraldine: As soon as it's fixed, I believe you will never have this issue again
Mia: and approx how long will it take to fix this issue?
Geraldine: I cannot promise an exact time frame Mia however our engineers are doing their part on it. You can try to make calls to double check as well.
Geraldine: Thank you for chatting then Mia.
Geraldine: Have a good day
Geraldine: Good bye
Mia: bye
I waited three hours and nothing was done to resolve my issue so I revisited the tech chat for magicjack.com. Here is the 2nd transcript:
Chat start time Oct 24 6:10: 04 PM EST
Chat end time Oct 24 6:50: 37 PM EST
Duration (actual chatting time) 00:40: 32
Operator Cassy
Chat Transcript
info: Please wait for a site operator to respond.
Info: You are now chatting with 'Sharon'
Sharon: Hello, how may I help you?
Mia: hi Sharon
Sharon: Hello, Mia.
Mia: I'm checking on an issue that I was having and spoke to Geraldine about earlier
Sharon: I apologize for the inconvenience that it caused you.
Sharon: Let me assist you with this.
Mia: there's still no resolution and I was hoping you could help
Sharon: Please hold on while I'll check your chat history.
Mia: ok
Sharon: Thank you.
Sharon: So your issue is you cannot make calls until now?
Mia: right
Mia: I still can't make them
Sharon: Okay.,
Mia: and Geraldine said technical support would fix this today
Mia: it's still not fixed
Sharon: Okay.
Sharon: Thank you for your patience. I will transfer you to a higher level of support. Please hold while I transfer you.
Mia: right
Mia: thank u
info: Please wait while I transfer the chat to the best suited site operator.
Info: You are now chatting with 'Cassy'
Mia: hi Cassy
Cassy: Hello, Cassy here. I'll be assisting you today. How are you?
Cassy: Please give me a moment to review your previous chat. Thanks
Mia: ok
Cassy: Thank you for holding.
Cassy: when did this issue started?
Mia: yesterday
Mia: did you read the chat from earlier today?
Mia: when I spoke to Geraldine?
Cassy: Please try calling on the given number, Mia. They will provide you further information with this concern.
Mia: I already did
Mia: they're telling that I have to purchase pre-paid minutes in order to make outgoing calls
Mia: I refuse to do that because I've already paid for a year of service
Mia: and I've only had it 6 months
Mia *: if your plan is truly unlimited, then I wouldn't be having this issue
Cassy: One moment please...
Cassy: Thank you for holding, Mia. As much as I wanted to help you now, You need to follow the instruction on the said number to continue your subscription on our service.
Mia: so the agent I spoke to earlier completely passed the buck and lied to concerning the resolution of my issue?
Mia: just as I recommended Magic Jack to several hundred people, I can do the same with negative press... Your company doesn't stand by their word when it comes to the unlimited plan and the customer service is a joke as well!
Cassy: Sorry for the inconvenience but that is the truth, Mia. You may try to purchase the minimum amount of IPP to get back your service.
Mia: so why go through the charade of telling that the problem will be resolved when you all had no intentions of doing so?
Mia: and again, your unlimited plan is NOT unlimited. It obviously has caps on it. You need to inform people of that BEFORE they spend their hard earned money and waste it on your product!
Cassy: I understand your frustration, Mia. But we have our term of service in regards with our unlimited calls.
Mia: well then you shouldn't tell people that your plan is truly unlimited
Mia: cause it's NOT UNLIMITED!
Mia: its at your discretion
Cassy: Please try to follow the prompt message to get back on service, Mia.
Mia: I'll be in touch with Good Morning America, PC Magazine, the BBB and the radio press to let them know how Magic appreciates the millions of dollars that they've dishonestly made with Americans who put trust in the false advertising that been all over the internet and tv.
Mia: have a nice day Cassy
Cassy: Thank you for chatting, Goodbye!
No one can or will EVER give a direct answer with detail regarding the Terms of Service for unlimited calls. Their description of unlimited calling is not truly unlimited but with caps.
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