AT&T Wireless AT&T excluding cell phone users from network Cortez Colorado
After duly arranging with AT&T to add an iPhone to our existing AT&T plan, changing the service to Cortez, Colorado from Anchorage, Alaska and after several months of flawless service, received a message that our phones (even at home) were now "Off Network" and AT&T was doing us the courtesy of noting in the crawl logo that we were off network. The implication was that we were using too many off-network data and they were just doing us a favor and that if we had read our contract we agreed not to use more than 6 mb/month of data off-network. Never you mind that now every call, every piece of data is now "Off Network." Never mind that AT&T has purchased Alltel in the Durango, Colorado and Shiprock, NM areas and within a year will have AT&T equipment on regional towers. Never was this explained when we converted our Anchorage AT&T to AT&T through Dillon, Colorado. I resent the implication that we are just using too much non-AT&T data. AT&T suggested I find another carrier, but due to the monopoly of AT&T and Apple iPhone, this makes my iPhone inoperable except as an expensive iPod.
Allan
Corterz, Colorado
U.S.A.
1 Updates & Rebuttals
tired of customer complaints
Winchester,Indiana,
USA
Options
#2
Sat, September 12, 2009
What you were told by AT&T is correct. As far as I know, all wireless carriers have a clause in thier contract stating that if you use more than a certain amount talk time/data with in a certain time frame then they can as you to find another provider. They do this because they have what we call "roamer agreements". A roamer agreement is an agreement made by wireless competitors to allow thier customers to use other networks at no charge to the customer. This allows them to have a larger coverage area but it is not cheap. I know the company I work for has the same clause that says if you use more than 50% of your usage off network for 3 months they can kick you off thier network because it becomes too expensive for the company to maintain you as a customer and they begin to loose money on you. This is an unfortunate fact that most don't realize. You may pay your bill every month on time but they could still NOT make money on you because they are paying the company who owns the tower you are using so you can have service.
Here is a possible option;
AT&T operates on a GSM network. This means it takes a sim card. If I were you I would find another wireless provider who operates on the GSM network. Once you have found your company, you can then get your phone unlocked and use it on that network. I am not sure if AT&T can help you unlock it but I know there online resources (be very careful of the company you choose to do buisiness with online) available as well as individual businesses who can unlock the phone for you for a small fee. This would allow you to change carriers and still use your expensive phone. Hope this helps! I always hate to see a consumer who gets caught up in a sistuation like this!!!