4 ms·

My gripe with Sonic is they pull stunts on the telephony just like the scumbags such as AT&T. In my case they will not supply DSL without also supplying phone

My gripe with Sonic is they pull stunts on the telephony just like the scumbags such as AT&T. In my case they will not supply DSL without also supplying phone service, for which I have absolutely no use. I don't even have a physical phone to plug in and haven't for years. They claim the phone service is "free", but you get nailed with various taxes and fees. The taxes are a legal requirement. The fees are entirely up to Sonic, although some have regulatory maximums. And Sonic charges those maximums - something AT&T doesn't! If they were honest they wouldn't hide things like this, pretending something is free when it clearly isn't.

Josh2600hz 14y ago
How do you deliver DSL without a phone line in the US? Even AT&T delivers a phone line on their "direct DSL", they just hide the costs of regulation in the rate. This, to me, isn't a case where sonic is to blame. This has more to do with restrictive FCC requirements than it does with Dane. Phones are due for a regulatory rework.
- gcb 14y ago
  You are wrong. After getting a special number ( 1-800-288-2020) i was able to order dsl from att without a landline contract and phone taxes from California. Nothing. Catch is, the advertised price of $25/mo for 6mbps only last one year, and you have to sign up for two years, paying $55/mo on the second. Still beats paying $40 all around for the crappy cable latency i get here (at One block from the att repeater building!)
  - noselasd 14y ago
    So in both cases you pay $960 for 2 years, except in one case you don't get a phone line.
    - eru 14y ago
      My math comes out differently.
    - gcb 14y ago
      your math is off. And i don't get a phone in either cases. one option is ADSL without a phone line taxes. other option is cable. also, without a phone for obvious reasons
  - Josh2600hz 14y ago
    Look, the 2882020 # is not special... That's the main AT&T customer service number. You're wrong. If you call AT&T, inside of their systems, they can only group dsl orders based on phone numbers. So even if they tell you you're not getting dial tone, in their system, you are getting dial tone. This has to do with very interesting regulations from the FCC which I don't care to dive into now. The special rate you got is the same rate you'd get by walking into an AT&T store...
- function_seven 14y ago
  DSL and dial-tone are completely separate services, that only share a copper line. Verizon doesn't require you to purchase dial-tone in order to get DSL. The only reason I can think of for AT&T to do so is to prop up their telephone business.
  - rogerbinns 14y ago
    AT&T will also sell me naked or dry DSL as it is called. It is sonic that insists on bundling "free" phone service and then charging for it through additional surcharges and fees.
timaelliott 14y ago
So, basically, your gripe is their billing contains line-item entries towards phone service. If they were to simply not show you these and instead have: "DSL Service: $40. Taxes & Fees: $7.99" you would be happy? The same provisioning taxes & fees apply to the phone line itself, regardless of your usage. Sonic doesn't own the telephone line itself. AT&T or whomever does. And you can be sure they aren't letting Sonic use those lines for free.
- iandanforth 14y ago
  Yes. I've always been fascinated by the 'show me the tax' mindset. I'm probably in the minority but an all inclusive, up front pricing structure will always make me happier than one that has a base + taxes + fees. I have no illusions of being able to convince you that one pricing structure is 'better' than another. But there are a lot of us out there who really don't want to know about all the components of the price.
  - ams6110 14y ago
    Separate itemization of tax may be a legal requirement in some areas.
    - rogerbinns 14y ago
      I signed up for a tmobile plan the other day. I talked to them online and then in a call, and asked what the taxes and surcharges would be. They said they could not tell me because it was impossible for them do so until after they generated my first bill (which coincidentally is the point at which it is too late to cancel). I did try using logic ("you already have code to calculate tax") but that obviously did not work. Even if what you say is an issue, they can still show totals just as plane tickets do. They can say the total is $55/mo of which $13 is taxes.
      - eli 14y ago
        I'm not sure this actually helps you, but I'm pretty sure there's a statutory Buyer's Remorse period where you can cancel within 14 days with no penalty.

Josh2600hz 14y ago

How do you deliver DSL without a phone line in the US? Even AT&T delivers a phone line on their "direct DSL", they just hide the costs of regulation in the rate. This, to me, isn't a case where sonic is to blame. This has more to do with restrictive FCC requirements than it does with Dane. Phones are due for a regulatory rework.

gcb 14y ago
You are wrong. After getting a special number ( 1-800-288-2020) i was able to order dsl from att without a landline contract and phone taxes from California. Nothing. Catch is, the advertised price of $25/mo for 6mbps only last one year, and you have to sign up for two years, paying $55/mo on the second. Still beats paying $40 all around for the crappy cable latency i get here (at One block from the att repeater building!)
- noselasd 14y ago
  So in both cases you pay $960 for 2 years, except in one case you don't get a phone line.
  - eru 14y ago
    My math comes out differently.
  - gcb 14y ago
    your math is off. And i don't get a phone in either cases. one option is ADSL without a phone line taxes. other option is cable. also, without a phone for obvious reasons
- Josh2600hz 14y ago
  Look, the 2882020 # is not special... That's the main AT&T customer service number. You're wrong. If you call AT&T, inside of their systems, they can only group dsl orders based on phone numbers. So even if they tell you you're not getting dial tone, in their system, you are getting dial tone. This has to do with very interesting regulations from the FCC which I don't care to dive into now. The special rate you got is the same rate you'd get by walking into an AT&T store...
function_seven 14y ago
DSL and dial-tone are completely separate services, that only share a copper line. Verizon doesn't require you to purchase dial-tone in order to get DSL. The only reason I can think of for AT&T to do so is to prop up their telephone business.
- rogerbinns 14y ago
  AT&T will also sell me naked or dry DSL as it is called. It is sonic that insists on bundling "free" phone service and then charging for it through additional surcharges and fees.

timaelliott 14y ago

So, basically, your gripe is their billing contains line-item entries towards phone service. If they were to simply not show you these and instead have: "DSL Service: $40. Taxes & Fees: $7.99" you would be happy? The same provisioning taxes & fees apply to the phone line itself, regardless of your usage. Sonic doesn't own the telephone line itself. AT&T or whomever does. And you can be sure they aren't letting Sonic use those lines for free.

iandanforth 14y ago
Yes. I've always been fascinated by the 'show me the tax' mindset. I'm probably in the minority but an all inclusive, up front pricing structure will always make me happier than one that has a base + taxes + fees. I have no illusions of being able to convince you that one pricing structure is 'better' than another. But there are a lot of us out there who really don't want to know about all the components of the price.
- ams6110 14y ago
  Separate itemization of tax may be a legal requirement in some areas.
  - rogerbinns 14y ago
    I signed up for a tmobile plan the other day. I talked to them online and then in a call, and asked what the taxes and surcharges would be. They said they could not tell me because it was impossible for them do so until after they generated my first bill (which coincidentally is the point at which it is too late to cancel). I did try using logic ("you already have code to calculate tax") but that obviously did not work. Even if what you say is an issue, they can still show totals just as plane tickets do. They can say the total is $55/mo of which $13 is taxes.
    - eli 14y ago
      I'm not sure this actually helps you, but I'm pretty sure there's a statutory Buyer's Remorse period where you can cancel within 14 days with no penalty.