I have been a customer of Cingular Wireless since 1998, when they bought Bellsouth and I became a customer of theirs. I have never had a problems, they always honored the warranties of the phones I purchased, and I always purchased my phones, never got a free one since I like the newest toys.
My problem comes with my contract being up in May, I was eligible for an upgrade, but wasn't sure of which phone I was going to purchase. When I made my decision, I noticed that the upgrade phone link on the website under my account only said "may be eligible" instead of saying eligible, as it had since my contract had been up in May.
I called Cingular, and was told an amazing story. Cingular has decided that they are losing money on me. I have 3 phone lines under my name and pay approximately 106 a month. They said I don't use enough of the features, such as text messaging, and internet, therefore, they decided to recoup their losses by taking away my right to a free upgrade. I thought this woman must have lost her mind, how could they possibly be losing money on me when I have been a faithful customer of theirs for almost 8 years, paying my bill in full every month!?! Alas, it turns out to be true.
Cingular has decided to punish certain customers that don't use enough of their "features" by taking away any discount ever on a phone, you have to pay full retail price for any phone no matter how long you have been with the company or how faithfully you pay your bills. I told the woman that I feel as though Cingular was slapping me in the face. This doesn't seem to be the way to retain loyal customers. I don't text message, I call people! I have the internet at work and at home, therefore I don't need to use it on my cell phone, it's slow and not what I want to do with my cell phone. How on earth Cingular thought this would be a good idea is beyond me. The customer service rep told me that people were so unhappy with this new policy, that Cingular is offering free termination of all lines for anyone who asks. Wow, is this how a company makes money and retains loyal customer base?
Needless to say, I have checked out other phone companies, and will probably go with Verizon, they seem to WANT my patronage, instead of opening a door for me to walk out and never come back.
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