Naked DSL Comes To Canada

from the doing-the-impossible dept

When I signed up for SBC DSL I was told that it was technically impossible to offer DSL without a phone line. Even though I pointed out that other providers, such as Qwest, offered exactly that, SBC insisted that it was a technical impossibility. Well, here's another telco doing the impossible. Bell Canada will be quietly launching naked DSL. Sooner or later, the telcos are going to have to admit that this "forced bundling" isn't doing anyone any good. While bundles can be good, that's not the case when parts of the bundle are completely forced on subscribers who simply don't need them. If anything, it seems like an anti-trust concern. The only reason SBC can get away with forcing you to sign up for phone service is because there's no real broadband competition.
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  • identicon
    Marc Armstrong, 7 Mar 2005 @ 1:12pm

    Speakeasy.net OneLink

    If you are looking to get DSL without the phone service requirement, Speakeasy offers it. For more info got to: http://www.speakeasy.net/home/onelink/

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Mike (profile), 7 Mar 2005 @ 2:50pm

      Re: Speakeasy.net OneLink

      If you are looking to get DSL without the phone service requirement, Speakeasy offers it.

      Ha! What's funny is that I tried Speakeasy, and that "naked DSL" offer isn't so appealing once you see the details. They told me if I *didn't* have SBC phone service they could only offer me slow DSL at a very high price (more than double SBC, and much more than SBC DSL + phone). If I *did* have SBC phone service, they could offer me cheaper and faster DSL, but still well above the price I'd pay SBC directly...

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Oliver Wendell Jones, 7 Mar 2005 @ 1:23pm

    SBC Sucks

    I used to have Telocity DSL as they were the first company to offer reasonably priced residential DSL in my area.

    They were later bought out by DirecTV-DSL and ran fairly smoothly for a year or so until DirecTV had to start drastically cutting costs and gave up on providing DSL.

    The whole time, even when it was Telocity, the equipment and connection on my end were all handled by SBC.

    When DirecTV gave up and told us we were going to be dropped, their solution was to turn us over to SBC-Yahoo! DSL, which, since we were already physically on SBC DSL, shouldn't have been a big transition, just a change in billing.

    I called the "special DirecTV-DSL transition" phone number provided and was told by SBC that I couldn't sign up for DSL because I didn't use SBC telephone service and there was no way possible for me to have SBC DSL without SBC phone service.

    I tried explaining to that operator, their supervisor and other people at SBC that I *ALREADY HAD SBC DSL HOOKED UP* but they were adamant - if I wouldn't give up my alternative (and drastically cheaper) residential phone service and switch to SBC, then they would not set me up for SBC DSL service.

    So, I called the cable company and got a great deal from them and have faster speeds as well.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Herbet K, 12 Mar 2005 @ 3:04am

    Speakeasy

    I have decoupled DSL from Speakeasy. It's not too much more at all, but there's just a little bit extra you have to pay because someone has to come out and switch the line around. Thinking of getting rid of telco altogether...

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Chris, 12 Mar 2005 @ 4:18pm

      Re: Speakeasy

      I have both a DSL-only phone line installed by Covad (with Speakeasy DSL) and a normal PSTN phone line with service from Sage telecom, all in an SBC area (San Francisco).
      The way I did this is I had SBC voice service, then got Covad-provision DSL (something like 5 years ago) with a dedicated phone line. I then switch the SBC line to another provider (Sage telecom).
      However, come to think of it, the phone line is in my wife's name, and the DSL line is in my name, so I'm not sure they ever made the connection (we have different last names....).
      Still, this shows it is possible to have 'naked' phone lines (2, in fact) and DSL.
      Chris.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    anon, 13 Dec 2005 @ 9:52am

    NAKED SBC DSL

    CEO ED WHITACRE DOES NOT WANT NAKED DSL.
    ED WANTS NAKED CUSTOMERS -- AFTER ALL THEIR POSSESSIONS ARE THEN HIS, AND HIS ALONE.
    ONE WAY ED WANTS TO GET ALL YOUR STUFF IS BY DOUBLE BILLING -- CROSS BILLING -- AND (TEXAS SLANG) STEALING YOU BLIND -- ED WHITACRE LIVES IN A 1.7MILLION HOUSE IN SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS.
    ANY DISPUTED CHARGES AND ED BILLS LATE FEES, PLUS MORE MYSTERY FEES - NOT GOVERNMENT RELATED.
    YOU PROTEST INTERNET-BECAUSE YOU CANCELED IT TWO MONTHS AGO ? ED APPLIES YOUR LANDLINE BILL TO INTERNET - SAYING YOU PAID IT - AND CUTS OFF LANDLINE FOR NONPAYMENT.
    HAVE YOU MARKETED AN ED WHITACRE'S BUTT DOLL- WITH POLE --- TO SIMULATE A RETURN OF WHAT ED DOES TO THE CLIENTELE with each NEW BILLING PERIOD ?
    PUT ED INTO A CIA PRISON. YES I HEARD THEY DO NOT EXIST. MADE TO HOLD ED.

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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